


The Case of the Curious Convention

by Jdragon122



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Castiel Big Bang 2017, Embarrassed Dean, Fluff and Crack, Language, M/M, Post-Season/Series 11, Sam Ships It, San Diego Comic-Con, Sassy Castiel, TFW at the beach, lots of jokes and references, more fluff than plot, some violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-04
Updated: 2017-05-04
Packaged: 2018-10-27 21:12:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 26,189
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10816860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jdragon122/pseuds/Jdragon122
Summary: The apocalypse(s) has been long over and the Winchesters have reverted back to their normal hunting habits with their best friend and angel, Castiel. One particular case they find leads them straight to California and specifically, San Diego. Doing a small hunt while out by the sandy beaches doesn’t sound like a bad deal and so Team Free Will sets out to hunt, vacation, and have fun while doing it. Little do they know that they just happened to drive into town the weekend of Comic Con - and that their case might have something to do with it.





	The Case of the Curious Convention

**Author's Note:**

> This was super fun for me to write so I hope you guys enjoy it too! And a huge thank you to [pod7et](http://pod7et.tumblr.com/) and [shannon-kind](https://shannon-kind.tumblr.com/) on tumblr for beta-ing and helping me through this process. And all the lovely artwork and graphics are done by [dmsilvisart](https://dmsilvisart.tumblr.com/)! She worked super hard on them so go check out her art masterpost over here --> [x](https://dmsilvisart.tumblr.com/post/160294641713/the-case-of-the-curious-convention)

 

 

 

A year — it had been a year since the last apocalypse ended.

Who knew that time could pass so quickly when you weren’t worried about the world ending? It was refreshing, but at the same time, scary. Dean was what, 38 now? Shit, he never thought he’d make it this far.

Heaven and Hell were finally under control and Cas now spent most of his time with the Winchesters, for which Dean was exceedingly grateful.

No God, no Darkness, no Lucifer — no worries. They had seen and fixed more than their fair share of apocalypses, so it was about time they got a break — or at least a break from Armageddon.

They still drove around the country hunting monsters before crashing back at the bunker. It had become their basic routine for the past couple months, and Dean was beginning to appreciate the normalcy of it all.

And that’s exactly what that was now: a normal day in the normal lives of the Winchesters and Castiel. Dean was cooking breakfast, and Sam was making coffee in preparation for the day’s research. Castiel, of course, was already up, seeing as he didn’t need sleep. He relaxed in the library and waited for the brothers to finish their morning ritual before sitting down at the table.

“Mornin’ sunshine,” Dean said as he walked in wearing his grey robe and holding a plate of bacon.

“Good morning, Dean,” the angel replied, looking up from his book to address him before going back to reading.

Sam followed and snickered at Dean’s new nickname for the angel. The older Winchester just glared at him before planting the plate in the middle of the table. He grabbed a piece of bacon and popped it in his mouth before settling in front of his laptop. Research time.

“Hey,” Dean said, elbowing Cas next to him. “You gonna have any?”

Cas briefly glanced up at the food before looking down again. “I don't require food Dean.”

“I know, and I don't care. I am going to make you like bacon,” Dean pushed the plate towards Cas. “Here.”

The angel sighed and reluctantly picked up a piece before taking a tentative bite. Satisfied, Dean took another piece for himself and looked over at the book in Cas’s hands.

He snorted as he read the title, “Really Cas? _The Secret Life of Bees_?”

Sam laughed as well, and Cas looked up, offended.

“It sounded interesting. Although it doesn't seem to have much on bees.”

“Yeah Dean, stop bugging him. Let him read the classics,” Sam teased.

“Shut up, nerd,” Dean said, smirking as he sipped his coffee. And so their morning began.

It was like any other day: the brothers scrolled through the Internet and Cas read whatever book had caught his fancy. The three of them simply enjoyed the time they had.

Finally, Sam perked up and cleared his throat, “Hey I think I found something.”

The other two looked up from their reading.

“So get this, _Mysterious Fire Kills 5 at the San Diego Convention Center.”_

“Okay but what's so mysterious about it?” Dean asked.

“Well they couldn't find the source of the fire and they said the scene had a horrible smell.”

“Demons?” Cas piped in, closing his book.

Dean sighed, “It’s always demons isn't it. You'd think Crowley would have ‘em all under control by now.”

“These are _demons_ we’re talking about,” Cas huffed.

Dean nodded in acknowledgment. “Alright then. Who are the victims?” He mumbled around a cup of coffee.

“Two women, and three men who had gone to the scene...that's a shame,” Sam said. His brother hummed in solemn agreement.

“So you guys wanna go check it out?” Sam looked from Cas to Dean and waited for an answer.

“Where did you say it was again?” The older Winchester asked, suddenly perking up.

“San Diego,” Sam replied, confused at his brother's enthusiasm. Dean began to grin like a little kid and looked excitedly at both of them.

“California? Hell yeah I'm in. It's about time went to the beach.”

“Yeah, it is,” Sam chuckled.

“So what do ya say, Cas? You in?”

“Of course, Dean. Though I don't see what's so special about the beach.”

Dean huffed and looked at him in disbelief.

“Seriously, when's the last time you were at a beach Cas?”

The angel looked away as he calculated his answer “Approximately 3,525 years ago.”

Dean just stood up and rolled his eyes. He kept forgetting Cas was as old as dirt. “Well that settles it. We are definitely going.”

Cas seemed confused, but just accepted the statement.

“Okay then,” Sam shut his laptop.

“Okay,” Dean echoed, still grinning. “We’re going to California!”

 

 

“Do we really need _that_ much sunscreen Dean?” Sam said, stifling a laugh as he watched his brother double check their things, nearly spilling them in the process.

“Hey, there’s nothing wrong with being prepared.”

Sam just snorted and looked out at the city. They struggled to park the car and find an affordable hotel but they eventually did it. It took them all day and night to get there, but after Sam convinced Dean to let Cas drive (not an easy feat), they were able to reach their destination by sunrise without too much sleep deprivation on the part of the Winchesters.

The city was a lot noisier than they’d expected, and crowded. It would’ve been annoying if they weren’t so hyped to be there. The new sights and sounds were all open to their curiosity.

They quickly checked into the hotel and drove to investigate the crime scene. It took significantly longer than expected and the traffic set Dean’s nerves on edge.

“If one more person honks at me, I swear I’m gonna shoot someone.”

Sam had just laughed and offered to drive. Dean, of course, refused.

“No one’s driving my baby except me — not in this mess.”

Once they were there, however, the bustle only seemed to grow.

“Is it usually this busy?” Castiel asked, observing the sea of people.

“I don’t know,” Dean said as he surveyed the crowd, “But some of these people are wearing some weird outfits.”

“Is there a holiday? Humans seem to be fond of those.”

“What holiday? It’s only July,” Dean continued to scan the multitude of people and pick out those wearing - were those Halloween costumes?

“Wait a minute,” Sam said, realization dawning on his face, “What day is it?”

“I don’t know, you have a phone, look it up.”

Sam flashed a  bitchface as he fished around his pocket. He whipped out his phone and began tapping the screen.

“It’s the eighth.” He tried to hide the excitement in his voice as he kept typing. Then he let out a small gasp and looked up.“Dean, It’s Comic-Con!”

“ What like _the_ Comic-Con, SDCC Comic-Con?”

“Yeah!” The brothers were looking at each other, grins on both of their faces.

Dean looked around with childish glee. “Awesome!” His eyes crinkled and shone with excitement as he smiled between his brother and the angel.

“I thought you weren't into the nerdy stuff,” Sam teased. Dean just huffed and flipped Sam the bird, much to his brother’s amusement.

Meanwhile, Cas was squinting at them and the crowd in confusion.

“I don’t understand, what is this ‘Comic-Con?’” Cas said, raising his hands in silent air quotes. Dean looked at him and snorted. He kept forgetting how little Cas knew of these kinds of things.

“Comic-Con. You know the biggest fan convention ever?” Dean enlightened.

Cas shook his head and Dean just rolled his eyes and turned back to Sam.

“Wait, so the crime scene’s in there?” the older Winchester said, pointing at the overflowing building.

“Yup,” Sam nodded.

“Isn’t it a bit early for them open up the area?” Dean asked. “They haven't even had time to properly investigate yet.”

“Hm, maybe,” Sam said, staring at the crowds as they passed in and out of the building. His face fell. “Crap. We’ll never get in. There’s probably loads of security, and we couldn’t go as federal agents.”

“We could go as fans,” Dean suggested.

“Yeah, but you have to get the tickets like months before hand.”

“You’re kidding.”

“It’s Comic-Con Dean,” Sam sighed.

“What about the lanyards? Everyone who gets in seems to have one,” Cas observed.

“Yes, but you only get one if you have a ticket.”

The angel squinted at the bustling doors and pursed his lips. “I’ll be right back.”

“Wow, Cas, wait —”

And then Cas was gone in a flutter of wings. The brothers looked at each other and shrugged.

“I didn’t even know he could still do that,” Dean murmured.

“Of course I can,” Cas said. Dean nearly shot the winged bastard when he popped up behind him. “God healed me a bit too, you know?”

Dean was about to reprimand him when Cas cut him off, “I got us lanyards.”

He dangled the objects in front of them. The brothers paused as they looked at the lanyards and nodded, impressed.

“Oh, wow, okay then,” Sam said, “I guess that settles it.”

“Wait, so we’re actually doing this? We’re going to Comic Con?” Dean asked, trying to minimize the smile curling at the corner of his lips, but failing.

Sam nodded and wore an equally wide grin. “Come on,” he said waving them over as he made for the entrance. “We’ve got a case to crack.”

They donned their badges and headed for the doors. Dean walked behind them and silently pumped his fist in the air. California _and_ Comic-Con? Hell-fucking-yeah!

 

 

“This place is huge,” Dean said, looking around in awe at all the vendors, lines, and badass costumes. He had never seen so many people gathered for the simple love for the imaginary; there was the Supernatural convention and Moondoor, but those had nothing on this. It was awesome, and he didn’t care anymore how much Sam would tease him for nerding out.

It was pretty damn cool! And he was amazed by how sophisticated it all was. Costumes and merchandise and panels — all just for the fans. And people were laughing and smiling, so happy to be there. It was a perfect way to forget about the troubles of life, he thought.

“Hey Dean,” Sam said, tapping his brother’s shoulder, “We’re on a case, remember?”

Dean reluctantly tore his gaze away from the view and pouted.

“Don’t give me that face. That’s my move.”

“There’s definitely something here,” Cas said, examining the building’s interior and ignoring the brother’s fuss.

“What is it?” Dean asked, looking around.

“This whole building’s warded. I won't be as powerful while I’m here.”

“Well that’s great,” Dean muttered. “So you can’t sense anything?”

“No.”

The older Winchester sighed and began rummaging through the small duffel bag he’d brought along.

“Guess we’ll have to do it the old fashioned way,” he withdrew two EMF readers and handed one to Sam.

“Wait, but don’t these look suspicious? We can’t risk being thrown out by security.”

“It’s Comic-Con, Sammy, we’ll fit right in,” he said, checking to make sure he had his knife as his brother did the same.

Then the Winchesters turned on the readers and to their surprise, they immediately started going haywire.

“Wow,” Dean exclaimed as the device whirred noisily.

“What the hell?” Sam shared his brother’s surprise and they swiftly shut the EMF off, attempting not to draw attention.

“It could be all the other electronic activity that’s here at the moment,” Castiel suggested as he squinted at the annoying noise. “If not I could take a look around and see if there’s anything here.”

“Nah. Not just yet. We just barely got here,” Dean said, still poking at the device.

“Are you sure? It might make things quicker.”

“Cas, no,” Dean sighed and looked over at the angel, “We’re sticking together. And besides, it wouldn’t be any fun without ya.” He gave Cas a friendly pat on the shoulder. The angel met his eyes with warm affection and Dean found himself stuck in his friend’s gaze. He blinked and laughed nervously, “Can’t leave me alone with Rapunzel over here.”

Sam snorted. “You sure you’re not Rapunzel with your heart eyes and — ow!” Sam exclaimed, as Dean smacked his little brother over the head, disheveling his long hair.

“Hey, shut up.”

But of course his brother kept on grinning. Dean felt his cheeks flush in embarrassment, though he wasn’t sure what for. And Cas staring at him intently didn’t seem to help.

He cleared his throat and looked back at him, “It’s no question, Cas. You’re staying.”

The angel’s mouth quirked up in a small smile, barely visible, but noticeable to the older Winchester. Dean coughed again and put the detectors back in the bag.

“Okay then, let’s start looking, I guess.”

They walked around the center, looking for any signs of a fire or abnormal activity, but unfortunately the size of the place — and the endless fan content — prevented them from finding anything the first time around.

 

“Holy shit! They have everything here!” Dean exclaimed, whistling as they passed yet another table for the new Star Wars movie.

“Yeah that’s cool, but remember the investigation,” Sam said, although he was also intrigued by the impressive display.

“Right, right,” Dean said, waving him off and continuing to look.

His little brother sighed. “Dean really —”

“Ooo! Look it’s the Deadpool guy!” Dean said, suddenly shooting off towards a growing crowd of people.

“Dean!” Sam tried to call his brother back, but he was already gone. Sam turned and gave Cas an exasperated shrug, but the angel was staring at where Dean had disappeared. When he turned back, he wore a deep, thoughtful expression. After another moment of thought, he finally looked up.

“I still don’t understand why Wade Wilson would prefer to be called by that name. And pools aren’t alive to start with.”

Sam stared at him a moment before shaking his head. “It's just his name Cas,” the Winchester sighed, “Well actually...nevermind, It’s a long story.”

Cas looked down, still contemplating this predicament until Sam grabbed him by the arm and lead him in Dean’s direction.

 

When they finally managed to peel Dean away from the guy in the tight, red suit, the older Winchester was smiling and trying not to laugh as he glanced over his shoulder.

“Oh come on!” Dean beamed as his brother frowned.

“Don’t ‘come on,’ me. We’re on a case, Dean. At least try and stay focused. I know he’s your favorite DC character, but — “

Dean took a sharp, dramatic intake of breath and looked at his brother in disapproval.

“What?” Sam asked, looking at him in confusion.

Dean just continued to frown and shake his head at him. “He’s from Marvel, Sammy. _Marvel._ Batman’s my favorite DC character.”

Sam sighed, “Okay, okay. I’m sorry. It’s just, let’s get the case done first. Then we can nerd out, and trust me, I want to.”

His brother pouted and crossed his arms. “Fine.”

“Hey guys,” Cas’s gruff voice cut between them. “I think we should look over there,” he said, nodding in the direction of the vending tables behind them. The brothers looked where he indicated.

“What's so special over there?” Dean asked, dropping his grumpy demeanor.

“I can sense several wardings, in addition to the ones in this building.”

“So you can still sense the warding just not whoever made it?” Sam asked.

“Yes. I suggest we approach cautiously.”

They nodded in agreement and made their way over to the table. As they approached, it became obvious Cas was right.

“What the fuck?” Dean muttered.

The table, now only a few feet away, was covered in not one, but several sigils. A familiar flaming star dangled from pieces of jewelry while angel banishment symbols repeated on the black tablecloth.

“What the fuck?” Dean repeated as the others stared, too focused on the decor.

A young, dark-haired woman sat behind the table tapping away at her phone until she noticed the three of them staring. She looked up and her face lit up with excitement at the sight of them. She gasped loudly and rose from her seat.

“Oh my Chuck! Your cosplay is perfect!” the woman exclaimed, walking around to the front of the table. She was wearing flannel and ripped jeans with — was that Dean’s necklace? Dean stared at the dangling necklace and confirmed that it was indeed the amulet.

“Uh, thanks…” he said giving her a strained smile and looking at his brother, who gave him an equally confused expression. “And I like your amulet,” Dean continued, awkwardly.

“Oh please, this was nothing. Your guys’s outfits are way better.”

The pieces were slowly falling into place as Dean processed all this information. Then it finally clicked.

“Oh that trench coat must've been hard to find,” she said, turning to Cas who merely stood and watched her curiously. “I have one, but it was so difficult to find a good quality one for a decent price.”

Dean turned and nudged his brother in the ribs.

“Is this what I think it is?” he whispered.

“I think so,” Sam whispered back.

“Seriously, I thought the books weren't even that popular. How'd they make it to Comic Con?”

Sam made a vague ‘I-don't-know’ sound and shrugged.

Meanwhile, Cas was utterly confused as to what was going on, but tried to play along. “Um, it actually wasn't too hard. I've, uh, had it for a while,” Cas mumbled, looking down at the tan fabric.

“Oh really? Where’d you get it?” the girl said, looking at his trench coat in awe.

“Uh…” Cas paused, he had no clue how to respond. He tilted his head as he thought and finally said, “I don't remember…”

The woman suppressed a smile as she watched his various facial expressions, “Oh, you’re in character too. Awesome!”

That only caused Cas to tilt his head even more, and she laughed.

“Do you guys mind if I take a picture?”

“What?” Dean and Sam looked up from their conversation.

“A picture,” she said again, “If that's okay.”

“Oh…uh,” Dean opened his mouth and tried to think of something that wouldn't sound rude. Pictures were bad and selfies were even worse. Nope, no thank you. No.

“Sure,” his stupid brother said. He just had to open his mouth.

Dean let out air through his nose and tried to maintain a pleasant expression.

“Yeah, why not?” Dean said, pointedly looking at his brother.

They huddled around the woman as she fiddled with her phone until she finally snapped a picture and held it up for them to see.

Sam chuckled when he saw Dean’s awkward smile and Cas’s confused frown.

“Hey, could I get one too?” Sam smiled at her and took out his phone. Dean gave him the stink eye, but didn't protest when she snapped another photo.

It was exactly the same, except now Cas was looking at the brothers with an odd expression. Yep, Sam was definitely keeping it.

“Thanks,” Sam said, pocketing the device.

“No, thank _you_. Oh and I'm Rebecca by the way.”

“Nice to meet you, Rebecca. I'm Sam.”

Rebecca smiled, “Then I can see why you like the character so much.”

“Yeah. And I relate to him a lot too so…yeah.” Sam laughed awkwardly and scratched the back of his neck.

She continued to grin, and then turned to Dean and Cas. “Oh and I didn't catch your names.”

“Oh, I'm John,” Dean said, gesturing to himself. “And this here is… Jimmy.”

“Well nice to meet you,. It's cool to see other fans around. Oh!” she said, suddenly shooting behind the table and grabbing a piece of paper.

“And here's the time for the musical if you haven't already heard. It’s in hall L 3.”

Oh god. Dean glanced over at Cas who was giving him a questioning look. He just shook his head and mouthed _later_.

“Thanks,” Sam said, taking the paper and looking down at the schedule.

“Well, I won't keep you any longer. I hope you guys have a good time!”

“Yeah, you too. See ya around,” Sam said, smiling and waving at her as they walked away.

Dean pushed past his brother, dragging a reluctant Cas behind him, and didn't stop until they found a relatively quiet corner. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

Cas waited for one of them to explain, but when neither of them spoke. He sighed. “Is someone going to explain to me what that was about?”

Dean ran a hand over his mouth and glanced at Sam. “Well, you remember the Supernatural books that Chuck wrote, right?”

“The Winchester Gospels, yes.”

Dean cringed, “Don't call them that, it's just weird.”

Cas frowned, “...okay.”

“Well, it turns out that the books have a fan base with fan conventions and everything.”

The angel looked back at the table where Rebecca was sitting, and a softness came over his features.

“What's that look for?” Dean asked. Cas returned his gaze with a small upturn to his lips.

“I think it's nice for people to understand us and our stories, even if they believe we’re fictional.”

“Yeah, but isn't it, you know —  weird that they pretty much know your whole life?”

“No,” Cas said, frowning again at Dean’s words. “I find it comforting. Love and understanding are not a combination we usually come by and I appreciate their enthusiasm.”

“Oh, you don’t know _anything_ about their enthusiasm,” Dean scoffed, but Cas looked off again. He stood in thought a moment before furrowing his brow, and turning back to Dean.

“Wait, you mentioned a fan convention and there’s a musical. When did you find out about this?” he asked looking between the brothers who returned guilty looks.

“Well, actually,” Sam started, “We went to a convention back during the first apocalypse —”

“— and then we went to a high school for a case about two years back where they had the musical,” Dean finished.

Cas’s face returned to its stony seriousness and his gaze turned to a glare, “And neither of you thought to mention this to me?” He continued to glare at them and gave an annoyed huff. “Well fine. When’s the musical?”

“You want to see it?” Dean asked flatly.

“Yes, I do,” the angel challenged.

“But wouldn’t it be awkward?”

“If you feel uncomfortable, you don’t have to go. You can walk around and try and find more evidence.”

Sam sat in silent amusement and looked down at the paper again. There was a 4 and 7 o’clock showing along with other shows during the rest of the convention. He wondered if the same girls would be there?

“You know,” he piped in, “We never saw the musical last time. Maybe it’d be nice to see it now.”

“Really? You too?”

Sam smirked at his brother. “Well like Cas said, you can keep searching, and we can go. Besides, we still have a couple of hours until the next show.”

“But you can’t leave me out. If you’re going then I’m going.”

“So you agree to go see it? You won’t ditch in the middle?”

“No! I mean yes, I’ll go, but remember it had that thing…”

“What thing?”

Dean looked down and scratched his neck, “You know the thing with —” he pointed between himself and Cas.

Sam snorted and tried to smother it with his hand. “Oh, you mean the Deastiel?”

“The what?” Cas asked, tilting his head and looking from Sam to Dean.

“No! We are not having that discussion with him!” Dean pointed an accusing finger at his brother before he could open his mouth. “You said the show’s not for a couple hours, so let’s keep moving.”

Sam sighed, but conceded to follow Dean who shot back into the crowd.

“So what is it?” Cas asked once Dean was out of earshot.

Sam just gave him a smug grin. “You’ll find out soon enough.”

They regrouped and continued walking in silence until Sam couldn’t resist the temptation any longer.

“CasDean?”

“Shutup!”

 

 

“You think this is it?”

“Yup. It’s the only tarped off area.”

The trio stood in front of a large plastic screen leading to what had to be the crime scene. The yellow caution tape stood out like a sore thumb against the white, but other than that it seemed to be normal.

“No security, no nothing. They really must not care,” Dean chided.

Sam paused in thought, then spoke in a low voice, “Hey, is anyone watching?”

His brother looked around and saw the rush of people flooding past them. “No you’re good.”

“Okay,” he said, stepping through the sheet, and the others followed.

“Holy crap,” Dean whistled, observing the carnage.

The room seemed to have been a storage room at some point, but had since been blackened and burnt beyond recognition. The floor, walls, and ceiling were sooty, and the drywall was falling apart in brittle, acrid smelling pieces. Their boots left footprints in the ash as they crunched the stones underneath.

“Well, it sure was toasty in here.”

“Yeah,” Sam agreed.

“And that smell is definitely sulfur,” Dean said, wrinkling his nose. “Did the article say anything about what they think happened?”

“No, they never made a hypothesis.”

Cas’s trenchcoat rustled as he pushed past them, stopping to stare at a particularly dark spot on the floor. He knelt and swiped a finger in the ash, squinting at the grey dust before wiping it on his coat. There were similar blotches scattered around the room, and they all seemed to stretch out from the center of the room.

“I’m guessing these were the victims,” Sam said, frowning and snapping a few pictures with his phone.

“Yes,” Cas grunted and stood up, “It looks like there was a bomb of some sort.”

“But then how do the demons fit in? Did they blow this up?” Dean asked as he looked around.

“I don’t think so.”

“Why not?”

“Because one of the victims was a demon.” The angel pointed to one of the blotches. “They all have residual protein particles, but this one also has demonic residue. And there’s a small trail of burnt herbs here which suggests that these two —” he walked over to some other blotches, “— threw some sort of magic grenade. They must’ve been hunters.”

“You got all that from this?” Dean huffed, gesturing at the black mess.

“Yes,” Cas said, “I see things a bit differently than humans.”

“Yeah, a bit.”

“So you’re saying the demon was already here and some hunters picked up the trail? Then they must’ve followed it in here,” Sam said, pursing his lips in thought.

“But you said there were five victims. You think the rest could’ve been demons too? They could’ve smoked out before the bomb went off,” Dean speculated, moving closer to Cas and considering the possible scenario.

“But are you sure they were hunters?” Sam asked.

“Who else would know how to make a magic bomb, besides witches? And they usually don’t like to stick their necks out.”

“Wait,” Cas said, suddenly jerking his head in the direction of the door. “Someone’s coming.”

They turned around, ready to attack, and tensed when they heard the footsteps from outside. The tarp rustled as a security guard stepped through, and the brothers relaxed slightly.

“Sorry gentlemen, this ain’t part of the geek getup. I’m going to have to ask you to —”

The man froze as he caught sight of the three men, his eyes visibly widening. Cas snarled and stepped forward.

“Wow, wait a minute!” Dean stuck out his hand to stop him, giving him a disapproving look.

“Dean, look!” Sam’s voice drew Dean’s attention back to the security guard, who was backing away from them with wide, _black_ eyes.

Well, that wasn’t good. Dean reached for his belt, and both brothers drew their knives in unison.

“Winchesters!” it hissed before trying to flee back into the crowd. But Castiel had already appeared behind the demon, blocking its path. It growled and threw a punch, only to be caught by the angel. Cas crushed its hand and swiftly placed his own over the demon’s mouth to smother its screams. He then twisted its arm behind its back, hand still on its mouth, and slammed it into the wall.

It struggled futilely, its body pinned against the crumbling drywall. Cas looked at the brothers as they approaching and saw Dean nod. Cas let his hand drop, and the demon took a haggard breath, hissing into the wall.

Dean leaned against the wall, allowing himself to be eye-to-eye with the creature.

“Why are you here?” he growled, bringing the silver blade into the demon’s line of vision. It blinked, changing its eyes back to its vessel’s color, and looked warily at the blade. “There’s no need to be clever,” he added. “He’ll smite you either way,” Dean said, feigning a smile and gesturing up at Cas.

“I don’t do dealings with Winchesters.” Its voice was shaky but its gaze held firm.

“That’s too bad because I was hoping to get this done quickly.”

Cas shoved the demon against the wall, and it let out a cry as there was an audible crack from its elbow.

“Dean, do you think it’s wise to interrogate him here? Someone could hear us,” the angel said nonchalantly over the demon’s whimpers.

“Not if we cut out his vocal cords.”

“I’m just here on a contract okay!” the demon spat, “I was hired by a higher rank demon.”

“Who are they and what do they want?” Sam questioned.

It laughed — an eerie sound in the mostly empty room. “Oh, I don’t know _who_ he is. I just know he hired me.” It giggled again. “And isn’t it obvious? All we want is death. You humans and angels with your morals and goodness. You don’t know how to have fun!”

The trio looked at each other with concern written on their faces.

“How many of you are there?”

“Lots of us,” it said simply.

“Then how come you didn’t notice us, or are you guys just that stupid.”

The demon snorted. “I didn’t say we didn’t notice you — we just didn’t approach you. Especially with a fully powered angel. We aren’t suicidal.”

“Well, apparently _you_ were.” Dean came closer, his knife pointed at the demon’s face. “Now, one last question.” The demon swallowed and cautiously eyed the hunter.

“Is your meat suit still alive?”

It smirked and opened its mouth to give a sly comment. But then it realized the reason for the question and shut its mouth again. Dean narrowed his eyes and scanned its face. It took a moment but he finally stood up, his decision made.

“Well, I’m gonna take that as a no. Cas?”

“Wait, wait, wait! —” it screamed, but the angel had already summoned his blade and driven it into the demon’s back. It tried to scream but the impact took its breath away, and the demon only sparked for a few moments before it fell limply to the ground. Cas let the body fall and returned the blade to his sleeve before wiping his hands on his coat.

They took a moment to breathe and put away their weapons before proceeding to drag the body to the back of the room and away from the door.

“Well,” Dean sighed, “Looks like we were right about the demon thing.”

Sam hummed in agreement and bent down to look at the guard’s badge. “Mike Williams,” he said quietly. “So this means there could be any number of demons here. This could turn into a massacre.”

“If it’s any help I didn’t notice any other demons while we’ve been here,” Castiel’s replied, his gruff voice echoing in the small room.

“That just means they could be hiding. We need to find out who their boss is.”

“Well we can start by looking for the usual signs — weather changes, power outages, that sorta thing — to see just how powerful this guy is,” Dean suggested. “But that means we’re gonna need better wifi cause right now it sucks.”

Cas nodded in acknowledgment. “Then why don’t you two go. I can scout for other demons and meet you when you’re done.”

“Sounds good. And I think we need to split anyway, it might be a while but someone will find the body and we don’t wanna be anywhere near here when that happens.”

“Okay,” Cas said, nodding. “Then I’ll just… look around.”

“Okay, good. Call us if you see any demons,” Dean waved them over and cautiously exited the room. Once they were out in the crowd again, Dean took out his phone and gestured for Sam to follow him.  

“Just hold on a minute,” Sam said turning to Cas.

“Is something wrong?” Cas asked concerned, but the grin on Sam’s face suggested the opposite.

“No, nothing's wrong,” Sam answered, but the younger Winchester kept smiling much to Cas’s confusion. “Just, I saw some interesting stuff over there when we were walking in so… if you wanted to see something interesting you’ll find it there.” Sam pointed down the hall and gave Cas a nod.

“Okay…” Castiel squinted at him but stayed silent.

“Hey, you two gonna chat all day?” Dean called back as he adjusted his EMF, making sure it wouldn’t freak out.

“Coming,” Sam flashed another smile and left to follow his brother, leaving Cas to stand in the middle of the convention hall.

The angel looked around at all the people as the brothers disappeared. Well, it couldn’t hurt to check it out. Besides Sam must’ve wanted him to check it out for a reason. So he turned around and began walking through the crowd.

 

 

Sam wasn’t lying when he said the stuff was “interesting” _._ Cas gazed at the slew of fan made merchandise: posters, action figures, costumes, and art pieces. There were many genres that he recognized: Marvel, DC, Star Wars, Star Trek, and several others he didn’t quite know. He knew that the boys had an affinity for some of these, although they never talked about it much.

    He continued walking through the line of booths, observing the people, the vendors, and the general happiness around him. It made him smile. There were people of all ages here to celebrate something that brought meaning, no matter how small, into their lives. These were some of the moments Cas appreciated the most in all of his long _long_ life.

Only in the last few years — after meeting the Winchesters — had he learned to value the beauty of time. They had made him realize that this momentary happiness was worth far more than the eons he had spent cold and heartless in the ranks of Heaven. He had felt no joy then — no emotions period, that he could recollect. But it had only taken one human, one Righteous man to change all that.

    It’s not that he didn’t appreciate Sam, he was his best friend, it’s just that Dean had been different somehow. Well, he had pretty much been the only human who he had a personal attachment to — the first in fact. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t count Jimmy as someone he’d been close to, but he certainly appreciated the sacrifice he had made. Without him, he would never have been able to meet the Winchesters or help to save the world or be where he was now.

    Now he could hear the laughter of children and see the smiles of the people around him. It reminded him that all of it has been worth it. These people were safe because of him and the Winchesters. They had paid their dues and now they had finally found some peace and hopefully it would stay that way.

    So he just kept walking. He still wasn't exactly sure why Sam wanted him to come here. There wasn’t any obvious reason that he could see. Maybe Sam really did just think the products were interesting and suggested he go see them too. They were rather intriguing, so he wandered the hall, surveying all of the laid out merchandise.

Nothing really caught his eye until he had almost made his way to the end. He nearly missed it as he swept passed the small table. It wasn't the same as Rebecca’s, but the same star shown on the side with big letters spelling out “Supernatural” _._

He did a double take and stopped. Dean had made it seem like their “fandom” wasn’t that big, but it seemed it was bigger than they thought. The table was set in a little corner with a decent amount of art displayed. He stepped closer and to his surprise saw what looked like a fictional adaptation of himself. He wore a trenchcoat, blue tie, and even wings and a halo. It was flattering. He smiled again, even though the picture wasn’t completely accurate.

He looked to the right and saw more fanart of Sam and Dean —done quite artistically in fact. He came closer and rounded to the other side of the table. His grin faltered as confusion replaced his glee. These new pictures were — erotic, to say the least. Although nudity didn’t bother him, he knew it was inappropriate to look at nude pictures of his best friends. He felt his cheeks flush and he turned to walk away when another thing grabbed his attention.

His eyes widened in surprise and a small gasp escaped his lips when he saw similar pictures of himself. And they weren’t just of him alone, but with Dean. It surprised him more than anything. He knew what the implications were and it didn’t exactly bother him as much as he thought it should. Then it clicked.

This was what Sam had been getting at and also why Dean had become so flustered. So Sam _had_ sent him here for a reason; this must be the whole “Deastiel” thing that he had refused to explain before.

He picked up one of the pictures and turned it over to read the label. Well, apparently it was Destiel and not Deastiel. He flipped it again and examined the image. It was of him, wings wrapped around Dean with his arms around his neck and their foreheads touching. They were staring intently into each other’s eyes, as they had done in real life so many times before. Was this how people saw them?

And surprisingly, he smiled. He knew the thought made Dean uncomfortable, but it wasn’t an unwelcome idea in his mind. He knew Dean was different, but was he _that_ kind of different? He swirled the idea around in his head over and over before he finally put the picture down. He needed more time to process this before he made any final conclusions. Plus he didn’t want to make Dean uncomfortable — but why did it make him uncomfortable? Was it simply his pride or something else?

But, he reminded himself, he could not make a decision without further investigation. Maybe he should talk to Sam. He seemed to know a lot about this subject. For all he knew this could be a simple poke at his and Dean’s friendship, a mockery of their unusual intimacy. Maybe for humans it was odd, but for Cas it was not.

He walked away, still deep in thought when he heard a high pitched squeal and jumped slightly. He looked up and saw a small child running in his direction and a flustered mother chasing him. The child stopped in front of him with wide and curious eyes, big and blue like his own.

“Are you Castiel?” the child shrieked, jumping up and down with excitement.

Castiel’s mouth quirked upward as he bent down to be on the same level as the child. “Yes,” he said and smiled. “And you are?”

“I’m Dean!” the toddler squeaked, then giggled causing the amulet around his neck to bounce.

“Ah yes, how could I forget. How silly of me.”

Cas looked up again as the boy’s mother came rushing over, “Oh I’m so sorry! He’s just a big fan of the books and he loves your character so —”

“It’s fine, really,” he assured her. He looked her over and saw that she was wearing similar clothing to her child; a jacket, flannel, ripped jeans and blond hair resting on her shoulders.

“And you must be Mary,” he replied and looked back at the child.

“Yes,” she laughed and put her hands on her hips.

“How old are you?” he asked the boy.

“I’m four!” he said, proudly holding up three fingers. “How old are you?”

“I am very, very old. But I assume you already knew that.”

“Uh huh.” The boy nodded with pride.

Cas felt his smile widen and then a vibration in his pocket.

“One moment,” Cas said, raising a finger and taking out his phone. On the screen was a text from Dean.

**Hey we’ve got something, where r u?**

He tapped on the device.

**Sam knows where I am**

Cas quickly put it back in his pocket.

“I’m sorry. Those were just some hunters that needed my assistance.”

“Like Sam and Dean?” the boy’s voice went up an octave.

“Yes, like Sam and Dean.”

“I wanna be a hunter too!”

Castiel feigned a frown and said in a serious tone, “You know being a hunter is a big responsibility? It can be very dangerous”

“But then I could be a hero, like you!”

Cas could do nothing but smile as his heart welled up with joy. Children were a gift to the world. They were pure, honest, joyful, and innocent to the world around them; which is how they brought so much happiness.

“What says you aren’t already a hero?” He gently laid a finger over the boy’s heart, “You don’t need to save the world to be a hero. Sometimes what makes a hero is what’s in _here_.”

The boy looked up in wonder and touched his own heart once Cas withdrew.

“Really?” he smiled up at the angel as his mother looked fondly at the both of them.

“Really.”

“Hey Cas!” Cas turned to see the Winchesters waving at him from the end of the hall. As they approached he looked down at the child again and saw his sad expression.

“Do you have to go now?” The boy pouted and his lips quivered.

“I’m afraid so. But don’t worry. Remember, I’ll be watching over you.”

The boy’s smile returned, and he suddenly giggled and threw himself at the unsuspecting angel.

“Thank you for saving me, Castiel!” the boy wrapped himself around Cas’s neck and the angel hesitated before gingerly hugging back.

Castiel never really understood the phrase ‘feeling like your heart was melting,’ but now he thought he did. And then, in a pure act of joy, he scooped the boy up in his arms and stood up. The sudden movement caused the child to screech with glee and it made Castiel laugh — a pure and genuine laugh.

He looked at the boy’s mother, who smiled as brightly as Cas, and walked toward her.

“I assume you’ll be wanting your child back.”

“Yes, thank you.” She reached out and took the child from his arms, placing him on the ground beside her. “Come on, Jonathan. Let’s go find mommy!”

She thanked him again and walked away with the boy following reluctantly.

“Goodbye Castiel!” he said, waving vigorously. Cas smiled and waved back. Then the boy ran to his mother, now several feet away and yelled, “I’m the one that gripped you tight and raised you from perdition!”

She laughed loudly, walking away until she finally faded into the crowd. Cas gave one last smile, then turned to the brothers in front of him.

Sam gave him a proud and knowing smile and Cas just grinned back at him before looking at Dean. He was surprised to see Dean staring at him, an odd expression on his face. He seemed surprised but also, well, he didn’t know what to call that other emotion. He just tilted his head and matched Dean’s gaze, holding it for several seconds until the hunter finally blinked and looked away.

“Well, uh.” Dean coughed and scratched his neck, looking around the area until his eyes landed on the _Supernatural_ table. He squinted at it.

“Wait a minute.” He walked over and grabbed one of the images off the table. He stared at it and then looked at the other pictures on display. He gasped and started coughing on his own spit when he saw the other side of the table. Meanwhile, Sam and Cas stood back, trying to hold back their amusement.

“That was why you wanted me to come here wasn’t it?” Cas whispered to Sam.

Sam just smirked. “Well, you did ask.”

When Dean was able to breathe again he turned back and glared at his younger brother.

“You bitch, you sent him here on purpose didn’t you!?”

Sam just shrugged. “Hey you wouldn’t let me explain it to him.”

Dean just looked back and forth between the two of them before finally landing on Cas.

And now that he was looking, Cas could see Dean’s freckles standing out on skin that grew pinker the longer they held contact.

Eventually, he decided to give Dean a pleasant smile which caused the Winchester to look at him in utter confusion. Dean opened and closed his mouth wordlessly a few times in disbelief.

“Uuuhhh okay,” he said with some difficulty, “Well, we — we found somethin’ over there that we should probably check out, you know together— not like _together_ , but... yeah, okay.” Dean half-ran back in the direction they came and Sam laughed.

“Nice,” he said, patting Cas on the back. The angel grinned. Maybe he should ask Sam about this later. Right now, it seemed that they had finally found something for this case. His questions could wait.

He followed Sam as he chased after Dean, and they made their way down the hall.

“So what is it you found?” he asked.

“Well, there’s definitely been power surges over the past week and the lights started flickering where we were during one of the panels. I think it was the Doctor Who one.”

“Doctor what?”

“Not exactly,” Sam said through laughter, “We think maybe it was one of the celebrities because the lights flickered again when they came out of the hall with security. It would make sense too. It’d be easier for the demons if they were escorted everywhere and had protection.”

“Hmmm,” Cas hummed, “If you get close to them again, I should be able to see which ones are possessed.”

“That’d be great Cas, thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

They continued walking until they finally caught up with Dean, who refused to look at either of them. He just silently waved them along and led the way.

 

 

“Okay, so…this is where it happened.” Dean stood in front of the now empty convention hall.

Dean's gaze was glued to the empty seats when he felt Cas walk up next to him. The angel observed the room, his nose wrinkling in disgust. When Dean dared to glance over, he smirked at the look on his face.

“I’m guessing that means they were here, right?”

“Yes, it smells very foul. I don’t understand why you can’t sense it.”

“Well it’d be stupid of them to let humans know they're here.”

“But why wouldn’t they hide it from me? If anything, I’m the bigger threat.”

“Maybe they got cocky.” Dean chuckled and then felt his face redden again when Cas looked over at him. Wrong choice of words. Dammit.

Behind him Sam snickered, and if they weren’t in a public place, he would’ve kicked the bastard. This was his fault! He didn’t need to think of _that_ every time the angel was next to him.

He shot his brother a death stare and gave him the finger, which when he turned back, had apparently added to Cas’s amusement. There was no escaping this, was there?

“Would you just stop it?” he said without breaking eye contact. Cas raised an eyebrow and tilted his head ever so slightly.

“I didn’t say anything.”

Oh, that smart bastard.

“But you were thinking it.”

Cas tilted his head even more and gave his most innocent, confused face — which he clearly was not!

“Damn you,” Dean muttered.

Cas laughed. He actually laughed! When had he ever seen him laugh, besides with that kid? It caught him off guard. Why was seeing Cas this happy and _normal_ so surprising? He quickly schooled his face into not looking quite so startled.

Fine, if Cas was going to play this game, then he’d just have to think of something to do in return. But first they had to figure out what was going on with this demon situation. People before pranks — lucky Cas.

“Okay whatever,” he grumbled, glaring at the both of them. “What’re we gonna do about this?”

“Well,” Castiel sighed and turned back to the empty room, “are the celebrities from this panel going to be at any more public events this weekend? Because I can’t track them down with the wards here. Maybe we can corner them.”

“We already checked that,” Sam said and took out the convention schedule, “Your best bet is the Sherlock panel, but that’s not until tomorrow.”

“Is there no way to track them before then?” Dean asked.

“Not unless we find out which hotels they’re staying at, and even then, that’s a lot of people to track at once.”

“Hmm yeah,” Dean mumbled quietly. “So I guess we’re gonna have to wait, huh.”

“Does it say which room the panel will be in?” Cas asked, looking down at Sam’s paper.

“Yeah, hall H at 3.”

“If we can get backstage, we might be able to set up a Devil’s trap.”

“And then we can wait for them to walk in, and the ones that get stuck are the demons.”

“Exactly.”

“Are you gonna be able to zap us back there without security riding our asses?” Dean questioned.

“Yes,” Cas huffed with the faintest smile on his lips, “The wards only prohibit my senses, not my wings. And security won’t be a problem.”

“Good, so all we gotta do is wait.”

Castiel nodded, and Dean looked down to read his military watch. It was about 6 o’clock pacific time. God, the day passed faster than expected. All the hustle and legwork had eaten up their time. And now that he thought about it, he could really use something to eat.

“Hey, how ‘bout we go get some food and then head back over to the hotel.”

“That sounds like a reasonable plan.”

“Wait a minute Dean,” Sam said, smiling. The taller man took out another folded paper and held it out to Dean. The older Winchester groaned audibly and covered his face with his hands.

“Ah come on, Dean. You promised you wouldn’t chicken out.” Dean let his hands fall back to his side and looked up at his brother’s ridiculous puppy eyes.

“Fine. Fine! I’ll go, but don’t blame me if I vomit all over your stupid hair.” He shoved the paper out of his face and scowled. Cas glanced at the paper and gave another amused huff.

“Great,” Sam said, grinning at him, “The show starts at seven, so that gives us plenty of time to eat.”

“Good.” Dean ignored his brother’s pleased expression as they made their way to the nearest food court.

It wasn’t hard to choose what to eat, with Dean and Cas quickly opting for some good old burgers and fries, and soon they were sitting at a table, discussing the oddities and wonders of their convention experience.

“I think it’s been wonderful,” Cas commented around a handful of fries. The angel didn’t need to eat but he sometimes liked to. It was kind of funny — and definitely not adorable. This whole situation was putting ideas in Dean’s head.

“Yeah, it hasn’t been too bad,” Dean added before biting into his hamburger. “There’s actually a lotta good stuff here.”

Cas nodded. “The people here are very creative and kind.” He smiled before returning to his food.

“Oh yeah,” Sam’s eyes lit up as he put down his salad (a freakin’ salad, really?) “Who was that kid earlier? He seemed to like you a lot.”

“Oh him,” Cas’s lips quirked upward and his gaze became distant. “His name was Jonathan. He just… liked my character. He’s four years old.”

Sam smiled and looked up at Dean, “Hey and he was dressed as you Dean.”

Dean swallowed, not taking his eyes off his burger. “Yeah, I noticed.”

Dean thought it was cute. The kid had been downright adorable, and he felt honored to have inspired him, but seeing the way he was with Cas, and the way Cas was with him… that had brought on a whole slew of feelings he wasn't sure he quite understood.

Something about seeing Cas happy had made Dean happy. But it was a weird happy, like a warm pool had suddenly decided to spring to life in his chest. Cas had been so gentle and loving, a side of him he hadn’t seen in awhile — since Claire. It made him curious.

He was used to the warrior Castiel that got shit done or the domestic Castiel that read corny books and watched cheesy TV shows in the bunker. This had been a different Castiel. Not that Castiel wasn’t _loving_ , he just hadn’t associated the angel with love in a long while. He liked to think of him as a friend, which he guessed was a form of love… oh god, he didn’t know anymore.

“Dean, you all good?” Sam called from across the table.

“Hm, yeah I’m good.” He took another bite of his burger and tried to focus on chewing instead of his current train of thought.

He noticed Cas looking at him from the corner of his eye and looked up at him.

“What?” he said through a mouthful of burger.

The angel’s gaze said it all. It was the same one he had given him after the child and his mother had walked away. It was a question he wasn’t sure he could answer right now.

The staring contest only lasted a few seconds before Sam coughed.

“Well, we should probably go soon, if we wanna make it to the show on time.”

“Okay,” Dean said grudgingly. He quickly finished off his food and threw it away. He waited until the others were finished then headed off to the musical — all the while, trying his darndest not to think about the embarrassment and teasing that was about to ensue.

 

 

“I liked it,” Cas said when the curtains finally closed.

The trio had sat in silence as they watched the performance. Once it was over the actors had bowed and the audience clapped.

The show lasted about two hours and in Cas’s opinion, was very well done. The story and characters were mostly accurate and the music was catchy. The actresses who played their characters weren’t the same as the ones at the high school, according to Sam, but the Winchester had been happy that the musical had achieved some success.

It was a little weird at first, as Dean had warned, but once he got over the deja vu, he began to appreciate the story. Seeing their lives laid out like that really put a new perspective on things. These people saw them as heroes and made it seem like their mistakes were well-intentioned. It took a little weight off his shoulders to know that they were perceived as the good guys, even if it was a fictitious universe.

Of course, not all of it was so emotionally moving. The robots were something he didn’t expect, and he could practically feel Dean sinking into the seat next to him during the Destiel scene. When they’d kissed, Dean turned beet red. It was kind of funny, and both he and Sam found it necessary to look at him every few seconds to observe his various levels of embarrassment.

Once it was over, Dean was still blushing, but not nearly as hard as before. He didn’t say a word as they made their way out of the theater and back into the hall.

Since Dean didn’t seem in the mood, Cas decided that Sam would be a better person to chat with. They both agreed that the musical was a pleasure to watch and discussed pretty much everything in it except the Destiel, to avoid aggravating Dean further.

Once again, Dean was eerily quiet and Cas grew concerned. Dean knew this was just teasing, didn’t he? It wasn’t serious — unless he was taking it seriously.

But Dean would never. Cas knew that Dean made him happy, and that they were friends — but Dean wouldn’t feel that way about him. He still wasn’t even sure if his feelings were that of a lover (he didn’t really have much to compare them to), but he wouldn’t be able to do anything unless Dean was okay with it.

Was Dean considering it? Why did this bother him so much? That question nagged at his consciousness. But if he wanted answers, then he’d have to ask. There really was no use in waiting. His original thought of asking Sam seemed redundant because Sam couldn’t know everything his brother was feeling.

“Dean,” he finally called when they neared the entrance.

“What?” Dean said, spinning around, and in Winchester-fashion, playing it cool and nonchalant.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong Cas, ‘m just tired’s all.”

Cas studied his face and could tell it was a blatant lie. And by the look Dean was giving him, Dean knew that he knew.

The hunter finally sighed and rolled his eyes. “Okay, what do you want me to say? You know what’s bugging me, so why even ask?”

“Because I want to know why. Why does this bother you so much?”

“You know, because…” he sighed and attempted to make several hand gestures before finally pointing between the two of them. “You get my point?”

“I _get_ many things, but your point is not one of them.”

“Do we really have to discuss this?”

“Yes Dean, I want to know.”

He sighed again and awkwardly looked back at Sam, who kept his distance. Sam just shook his head and shrugged.

“Because… because…” he struggled for words, and it was starting to grate on Cas’s nerves. Finally, he looked Cas in the eye and shook his head slowly.

“I don’t know, okay… I don’t know. It’s not — god! I’m no good with words Cas, you know that!”

Cas just stared at him, a surprised look on his face.

Dean was just as confused as he was. They were both in the same boat and somehow that answered Cas’s question. Dean was always cautious when it came to new things, and this was definitely new to him.

“Okay,” Cas said quietly. He wouldn't push anymore than he already had. He picked up the pace, walking ahead and out of the convention center, the Winchesters following close behind.

They silently made their way to the Impala and drove back to the hotel. The boys dropped their stuff onto the beds and Cas waited until they were comfortably settled before speaking up again.

“Should I wait here with you?” he asked.

Dean looked up and looked him over then cleared his throat.

“Uh, maybe you could start getting ready for tomorrow. We’ll need a couple hex bags and to set the trap up inside.”

Cas frowned slightly, but he understood. It was a legitimate excuse, and he knew Dean needed space when something was on his mind.

He sighed and prepared to take flight, when he noticed Dean grabbing his car keys and jacket.

“Where are you going?”

“I’m gonna take a drive,” he said without looking up.

Sam huffed and gave him an annoyed look. “You know this is the city. You can’t just take a drive.”

“Watch me,” Dean retorted and headed for the door. Cas looked at Dean with concern, but Sam shook his head.

Fine, he would prepare for the morning and leave Dean to his brooding. But he wouldn’t let him ignore this forever.

With a flap of his new wings, he disappeared.

 

 

Shit.

Shit-motherfucking-son-of-bitch!

Dean found the nearest open road and drove out of the city, the trail of curses continuing to run through his head. He didn’t know how long he drove; he just knew he needed to get away.

As soon as Cas had asked the question, he knew neither he or his brother were going to let this go any time soon. He would bet anything that Sam was going to try and _talk_ to him about it once they got back, and that’s exactly what he didn’t want — hence his sudden departure.

He was confused and that made him panic. Why was _this_ so confusing! He and Cas were friends, just friends, and yet he wasn’t nearly as averse to their relationship as he thought he should be. When the scene had played out in the musical, he knew both Sam and Cas were watching him, and that’s why he’d nearly had a full on panic attack — what if they figured it out? Watching the kiss made his brain do funny things and god! — what if Cas noticed?

The truth was, he had actually liked the idea of Cas kissing him. And one thing led to another and then he was forcing himself to focus on anything else before his mind wandered too far. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.

He liked women — yes women! But that didn’t mean he couldn’t admire a handsome man — which Cas was. But that wasn’t the real Cas — it was just a vessel. For all he knew, Cas could’ve shown up at that barn wearing some hot chick. Oh god, what if he had — would that have changed their relationship? He thought back to Anna and the answer came to him like a slap to the face. Yes, it would’ve.

But it shouldn’t. His friendship with Cas was something special. He knew that. It didn’t matter what he looked like, he was still Cas — whether he was a guy or gal, did it really matter?

Dean knew that most successful partnerships started off as good friendships, and he and Cas definitely fit into that category. He knew the guy for almost a decade now, which was good portion of his life.

But did he really have _feelings_ for Cas? And if so, why had it taken him this long to figure it out?

Oh, he knew the answer — it was because he’d never considered the fact that he might actually be into guys. Maybe his strict childhood had driven the idea from his mind, and only now had the thought re-emerged. But a sexuality crisis at his age? That was pathetic.

Okay, okay. He needed to calm down. He breathed slowly in through his nose and out through his mouth. There was nothing wrong if he liked guys, and he was sure Sam and Cas believed that too. Their support wasn’t the problem; it was that he may or may not have a fucking crush on his best friend.

He had to think about this logically and stop freaking out. He thought back to the last time he had had serious feelings for anyone. Unfortunately, that meant thinking about Lisa and Ben. But he had to think about it. Why had he liked her or other girls, like Cassie (boy wasn’t that ironic)?

It really had been a long time since he considered getting serious with anyone. Ever since Lisa he decided it would be too dangerous for anyone involved, but now things were fine — hell, things were great! And Cas, he was always there — he wasn’t going anywhere, and they had gone through hell together: literally and metaphorically. If anything, Cas was someone he could always rely on to be there no matter what.

He admired that. He admired Castiel’s sacrifices and his kindness and his bravery … and the little way he smiled when Dean made a stupid joke, or when he complimented Dean’s cooking, or when his hair was all messy and his eyes shone that ridiculous shade of blue…

Holy shit.

He was in love with Cas.

 _He_ was _in love_ with _Cas_!

Dean quickly pulled off onto the side of the road and rested his head on the steering wheel. Ten years — it had taken him almost ten fucking years! He always thought that feeling in his gut was just Cas’s angel mojo, but no, it was just himself not being able to pull his head out of his ass.

“Fuck!” he swore loudly. And suddenly, he was thinking of all the missed opportunities, all the little clues that were such a strong indicator. He didn’t know how he could’ve been so blind.

Cas had told him plainly, ‘it had been for him, always for him.’ And yet he had refused to see it for what it was. Did that mean that Cas _loved_ him back? Surprisingly, it was Cas that had been pushing the topic, more than Sam.

What if he didn’t? What if Cas didn’t know what all of that meant? He was still new to humanity. What if, like Dean, Cas didn’t know what was there. Oh god, he couldn’t tell him! But he had to; it’d been too long!

He fired up the Impala’s engine again and turned her around. He was going to tell him. God dammit he was going to tell him! But he couldn't tell him now — maybe after the case. Yeah, that was a good idea.  

Okay, he had a plan — he could stop panicking now. If only his brain would listen. He needed to think of something else.

For some reason, the first thing that came to mind was Cas and he tried his best to force him from his mind, but to no avail. Fine, if his brain wanted to think of Cas, it would think of Cas. After a few more minutes of driving, he finally managed to come up with something other than Cas’s eyes, lips, or various other body parts.

Ah hah! Dean remembered now; he still needed to get Cas back for all of his relentless teasing. Yes, this was a much better train of thought — and would definitely keep him from freaking out.

And he had the perfect idea. There had to be a clothing store around here somewhere.

It took him forever, but he eventually found what he was looking for. He finally pulled back into the hotel and quietly unlocked the door. Sam was sound asleep, to his great relief. He deposited the shopping bag on the floor before crashing onto the mattress.

 

 

When Sam woke up the next morning, he was surprised to find that Dean was already up. Usually it was him that was the early bird, but apparently Dean was in a good mood.

Sam couldn’t see Dean, but he could hear him messing around in the bathroom. So he just got up as usual and made some morning coffee. He was a bit miffed that Dean had ditched last night, but he understood that it was very much a Dean thing to do. Avoidance seemed to be a Winchester specialty.

But his brother had to know that he couldn’t avoid him forever. Sam needed him to talk about it because by god! — he didn’t know if he’d be able to take this any longer. Yes, he brought it up, but it was turning into something he didn’t expect. Cas’s involvement must not have helped things either.

But Sam had to admit, finally seeing them acknowledge their _feelings_ was somewhat of a relief. Of course, he wouldn’t force this on either of them — but he had noticed a long, _long_ time ago that there was something different between them. There was no way that _that_ much staring could just be chucked up to ignorance of human customs. As far as Sam knew, Castiel was the only angel who did that and it’s not like he stared at Sam the same way.

Besides, if it turned out that there really was _something_ there, then the two of them would be all the more happy. They could settle down, if they wanted. There wasn’t an urgent need to save the world anymore.

Oh, who was he kidding — he was getting too deep into a relationship that wasn’t even his. But this was still his brother and best friend he was talking about, if he could help them be happy then he would. Dean just needed to stop being _Dean_ for one minute and look!

Sam gripped his coffee mug with both hands and silently sipped it. It was almost empty now and Dean had still not come out of the bathroom. What was taking him so long?

He grumbled as he got up and made his way to the bathroom.

“Dean!” he called, knocking on the door, “You’ve been in there forever. Come on.”

“Sorry!” Dean called from inside. There was a soft click and the door opened.

If Sam hadn’t been holding his cup with both hands, he was certain he would’ve dropped it. His mouth fell open, and he gaped as he looked down at Dean’s attire.

He let out a bark of laughter and turned to set down his mug.

“Oh my god are you —”

“Yup,” Dean said, a goofy grin on his face, “I said I’d get him back.”

“Oh my god!” Sam said, laughing again as Dean strutted into the room wearing a full length trench coat, suit, shirt and tie — all identical to the ones Cas wore.

“All I’m missing are some shoes. But I’m sure I’ve got some in the closet.”

Sam continued grinning and snorted. “You sure that’s all that’s in the closet?”

Dean seemed to have missed the comment as he grabbed his shoes. And Sam was tempted to push him in.

“God, this coat is hot as hell though!” Dean sat on the bed and did his laces.

“Uh huh, I’m sure Cas would be flattered.”

Dean snickered, but looked Sam straight in the face and shrugged, seemingly unbothered by the obvious subtext.

Well, that definitely wasn’t normal.

Sam frowned and stared at his older brother. Since when was Dean okay with this?

“Hey, should I call Cas? Let him know that we’re coming?” he finally said.

“Yeah, we should meet up with him before the panel. But don’t tell him…” Dean smirked at Sam as he packed his bag for the day.

“Yeah, gotcha,” Sam replied.

Thankfully, the traffic on the road was minimal and they arrived with no problem. They showed their lanyards at the front doors and found Castiel waiting for them inside.

 

 

If only Dean had his phone out. The look of confusion that slowly dawned on Cas’s face as they approached was priceless. The angel seemed to ignore Sam’s very existence, his eyes glued on Dean.

Dean grinned smugly as he stopped in front of Cas and shoved his hands into his coat pockets. He raised his eyebrows and waited for the angel’s response, but Cas just stared at his attire. The angel scanned him up and down, his mouth quirking as if wanting to speak. But he said nothing, swallowing whatever words were wavering on his tongue. Finally he met Dean’s gaze and narrowed his eyes.

“Dean, what are you doing?” His tone was slightly annoyed which only caused Dean’s smile to widen.

“I’m just dressing up, Cas. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. When at a con, do as the con-goers do.”

Cas looked more befuddled and tilted his head. Dean mimicked his confused expression, taking the angel by surprise.

“And let me guess,” Dean said, imitating Cas’s gruff voice, “You didn’t get that reference.”

Castiel glared at Dean as he began to understand the jest, then snorted and rolled his eyes dramatically.

“You’re mocking me.”

“No, ‘m just being accurate.” Dean flashed him a toothy grin and Castiel let out an annoyed huff.

“Is this really necessary?” Castiel said, finally turning to Sam who wore a giddy smile.

“No,” the younger Winchester snorted, “but it’s funny as hell.”

Castiel frowned at Sam and looked at Dean.

“Don’t you have other clothes?”

“Yeah but I’m already here.”

“There’s enough time for you to change.”

“The hotel’s far away.”

“I could fly you back.”

“But that wouldn’t be fun.”

Dean kept smiling, but it slipped a little when the angel’s gaze seemed to pierce his very soul. He fidgeted where he stood and glanced at Sam and back to Cas.

“Hey man, use your death stare on the bad guys, not me.”

Cas still held the eye contact.

Man, Cas’s eyes were really fucking blue. It was like a small ocean with waves and everything. There were hills and valleys of different shades, and if only he could get a little closer...

Wow, when did he become such a sap? Dean wondered if he looked closely enough, if he could see Cas’s grace reflected in them. Hey, it was a legit question. Of course he said nothing out loud.

Knowing how he felt about Cas made this staring thing different, and his curiosity was starting to get the better of him. He wanted — no _needed_ to know if Cas felt the same. It was weird and new and his chest felt like it was about to burst. God, it was like his feelings were trying to compensate for all the years of repression.

But he continued staring until something in Cas’s gaze changed. It was a look of surprise and — if he wasn’t mistaken — wonder. He knew that look — Cas was studying him. He could sense that something had changed. What if he figured it out? Oh not now, please not now!

Then low and behold, Castiel looked away. Sam had been standing awkwardly to the side and also looked at Dean in confusion.

Was it that obvious?

“Fine then,” Cas said, his gravelly voice still edged with annoyance. “The trap and hex bags are in place, all we need to do is wait.”

“No demons tried to creep up on ya?”

“None that I couldn’t take care of.”

Dean grinned, “I bet.” He swallowed nervously under the angel’s unrelenting scrutiny, but eventually managed to spew out some more words.

“Well should we go?”

“Yeah, we should,” Sam answered as he gave Dean the ‘what-the-hell?’ look.

Cas eyed them both suspiciously before walking down the hall.

“What?” Dean whispered to his brother.

“Are you kidding?” Sam asked, obviously trying to hide a smile. “What the hell was that? I’ve never seen you give him such obvious heart eyes.”

Dean scoffed. “Oh shut up,” he quipped, smiling despite himself.

“Oh Cas,” Sam mocked Dean “I bet you could take on a whole army of demons. Oh Cas, I bet you're so strong , you could break a bed without even —”

“Hey, I said shut up,” Dean threatened halfheartedly, his smile widening.

“You know I can hear the both of you!” Castiel called without looking back.

Crap, the whole angelic hearing thing. Whoops. But this time it was Sam who looked flustered while Dean jogged to catch up with the angel. He slowed to a walk beside Castiel and to his amusement, saw that he had a slight redness to his cheeks. Oh my god, did he just make an angel blush? He couldn’t help but giggle, causing Cas to glance at him.

“What’s so funny?” The angel asked, furrowing his brow.

“Nothing,” Dean responded, chuckling.

Cas narrowed his eyes, but looked away. “Really, nothing?” he said.

“Yeah.”

“Well, you’re wearing the wrong shoes.”

Dean noticed the way the corner of Cas’s mouth quirked up when he spoke.

“What?” Dean asked, looking down.

“Those aren’t the right shoes. Mine don’t have laces.”

Dean laughed as he compared their footwear. “Hey, we don’t need to look exactly the same.”

“Really, I thought that’s what you were going for. Isn’t that the point of cosplay?”

“Nah dude, the point was to mess with ya.”

“Well, it worked,” Cas said, eyes scanning over Dean again. A shy smile decorated his features.

Dean grinned back. He couldn’t stop. He made Cas smile, and it was the best feeling in the world.

They walked a little further down the hall in comfortable silence when Dean had a sudden stroke of genius. The beach was something he and Sam meant to do for a while, and now that he thought of it, it would be the perfect opportunity to get Cas alone. Beaches were supposed to be romantic, right?

“Hey Cas,” he said cautiously. “You know I'm still gonna make you come to the beach with us.”

Cas’s lips twisted into a smirk. “You’re not going to let me off on that are you?”

“Nope. But come on! It’ll be fun.”

“I don’t have the proper attire Dean. I’ve never needed swimwear.”

“Hey, well, neither do me and Sam. We just need to pop into a store really quick and buy some.”

Now that he thought about it, seeing Cas shirtless in wet swimwear probably wasn’t the best idea, but he was not chickening out on this.

“You’ll be fine. I promise,” Dean reassured. “But first, let’s go kick some demon ass.”

“I agree.”

Then they both looked back and saw Sam walking a safe distance behind them, keeping out of their conversation. He watched them with interest and was baffled when they both turned to him.

By the time he opened his mouth, they had turned back around.

“How much you wanna bet he’s gonna complain about his hair?” Dean snickered.

Cas smiled at him and chuckled, which was sweet music to Dean’s ears. “Or — what happens if someone accidently puts sand in his hair?”

Dean met his gaze and spoke with newfound enthusiasm.

“Oh my god Cas!” he laughed. “This is why I —” he stopped, the words seemingly stuck in his throat.

“Why you what Dean?” Cas’s eyes widened in anticipation.

Oh fuck, did he really almost say it? He could feel his ears heating up.

After quite a bit of stammering, and some odd looks from Cas, he finally composed himself.. “I — I said ‘that’s why I think you’re such an awesome friend Cas.’”

He saw a flicker of disappointment on the angel’s face and his mind suddenly filled with confusion. Had Cas wanted him to say it? Was this a sign? Did Cas want him too? Shit. Did he mess up? Maybe he was misreading the situation.

But the flash of emotion was over as soon as it began and now Dean’s stomach was in a knot. Okay, just keep walking. It’ll be okay.

Someone behind him coughed. Dean forced himself not to look back at his brother, who he was sure was ready to make some sly comment. But it didn’t matter right now because he should be focusing on the case… yeah the case.

Well, after this was dealt with, then he could worry about his newly renewed (maybe) love life. He just had to wait.

 

 

Apparently, dressing up as beloved fictional characters made you very popular.

The amount of photos that they had taken was ridiculously high — at least to Cas’s standards. He didn’t expect this much attention, but that was probably because they were some of the better dressed people cosplaying within the “Supernatural” fandom.

The attention was touching and slightly amusing. But it was nearing the time for the panel and they needed to get backstage.

They reluctantly departed and made their way to the designated hall. It was a bit of a walk which gave Cas time to think.

Dean was acting weird ever since this morning. It was surprising enough to see Dean wearing _his_ clothes (and teasing him ever since), but his change of mood was unexpected. Dean laughed and smiled and didn’t pretend to be grumpy.

The sudden change confused Cas who tried to determine what could’ve precipitated the change. Dean usually got excited when he was talking about something he loved or that made him exceedingly happy, but unless he had secretly gone to get some Superhero merchandise (Sam had forbade him) then he couldn’t think of a plausible reason.

But Cas’s greatest concern was the way Dean had looked at him. Of course they had done that before, but Dean acted unusual. In the past, Dean had looked at him with what he hesitantly called fondness; now it was... different than what he was used to. He was used to the friendly pat on the back when he accidently did something amusing or when Dean used a silly reference — but it had been a long time since Dean had looked at him like _that_.

The last time Dean gave him that look, was when he and Dean were in the Impala after he rid himself of Lucifer. But Dean had called him a brother then, not… anything more.

Dean looked so happy to see him, like he hadn’t seen him in weeks or months. His eyes practically shined. And his little sideways smile made Cas feel something he didn’t have a name for. Whatever it was was, it was warm and soft and made his grace light up in a way it had never done with anyone else.

He liked the feeling, but it caused him so much grief. What did it mean?

He knew a possible answer but he didn’t want to label it, in case he was wrong. He didn’t want to make anything _weird_  between them. He valued Dean’s friendship and would rather keep it than risk losing it.

He was curious, but he was willing to tuck his feelings away if it threatened the relationship between him and Dean. That was more important.

The three of them made their way to the panel and carefully planted themselves away from the guards at the door. Cas knew they weren’t possessed — but other guards were. Cas didn’t meet any demons other than the ones that had tried to corner him the night before. They were low level demons like the one from earlier. It was quite easy to set up after that. Cas wouldn’t be surprised if it turned out these demons weren’t as big as they talked up to be.

“Okay,” Dean said once they were huddled in a corner, “so who are the possible targets?”

Sam took out his paper and began reading off the list of names. “Mark Gatiss, Sue Vertue, Steven Moffat — I think I said that right — Amanda Abbington, Martin Freeman, and Benedict Cumberbatch.”

“Isn’t that a breakfast dish?” Dean asked

“What?”

“Benedict. Isn’t that a breakfast dish?”

“Oh my god Dean, that’s his name!”

“What really?”

“Yeah. _Eggs_ Benedict is the food.”

“Well hey, I was close,” Dean mumbled.

“Okay,” Sam sighed and looked back at his paper. “My best guess is that one or more of these guys are possessed. Cas, you said you’d be able to see them once we got close and the trap should be all ready to go.”

The angel nodded. “And I can get you backstage when you’re ready.”

“Good, so we’re all set?”

“Hell yeah,” Dean said smirking and patting the dagger hidden in the belt of his dress pants. “Okay Cas, let’s go.”

Castiel glanced around to check if anyone was watching, and then grabbed a hold of both Winchesters. He closed his eyes, focused on their destination, then extended his wings. It took less than a second before his feet hit ground. Sam and Dean wobbled before regaining their bearings and Cas scanned the room while he waited for them to rebalance.

They were behind a giant screen and he could hear the audience filing in. There was currently no one around them, but he assumed that would soon change. It was dark, but that didn’t hide anything from his sight.

Once Dean got his bearings, Cas walked over and lifted up the large rug next to the couch. The Devil’s trap was still intact and a quick assessment of the couch revealed that the hex bags were untouched.

“Everything seems to be fine,” he commented.

“Good,” Sam said, “because they should be here any minute.”

“Should we hide?” Dean asked.

“That’s probably a good idea. We’ll be able to catch the demon by surprise.”

“Over here,” Castiel said, gesturing to a spot behind a pile of boxes in the corner. It was the perfect place to hide, with the packages concealing them from every angle in the room.

“Okay, seems like a decent spot.” Dean assessed the space and dramatically swooshed his coat as he spun around. Cas knew he was trying not to smile, but Dean’s enjoyment was obvious.

Cas sighed and rolled his eyes. “Would you be serious for the few minutes it’ll take to do this?”

“No, never.” Dean flashed him a smile and spun around again. He was far too giddy.

“We get it, Dean. You’re secretly a ballerina,” Sam scoffed as he found a space that would hide all 6’ 4” of him.

Dean huffed, but said nothing more.

They waited for several minutes. It was obvious the boys were uncomfortable. And it was clear Dean was struggling with his costume. Cas sat and watched Dean try to adjust his coat without standing up. He finally managed to fix it, but his cheeks reddened when he caught Castiel’s eye.

“Hey, shut up,” Dean whispered. Cas gave him a smug look.

They both snapped their heads up when footsteps echoed down the hall. They silently drew their weapon. Eight people entered the room: two body guards and the celebrities. Cas watched the people enter the room and immediately saw the twisted soul writhing in the body one of the older looking men. He didn’t remember his name but he was definitely the demon. Good thing the Winchesters had guessed right. The angel felt the brothers tense. They waited for Cas’s signal.

This demon looked more powerful than your run-of-the-mill demon. It's disfigured face was desecrated with bloody flesh and spikes. Cas turned to the brothers and pointed to the possessed man. They both looked at him and nodded.

He then raised a hand, signaling the Winchesters to wait. If they could get this demon in the circle first, it would make things easier. But as the demon approached the couch, it tensed. It carefully moved the rug with its foot while the others settled on the couch, eyes widening  as it caught sight of the trap painted on the floor.

Damn, so that plan was out the window.

The demon took another path to the couch, tapping a quick message on its phone before sitting down.

“You know Martin, if you aren’t too tired after this, I thought we could go to the pub.”

“Do they even have a good pub around here?”

“I’m not sure, but it’d be ridiculous if they didn’t.”

“Well, right now I could go for some bloody tea.”

The others chatted as the demon kept quiet and made itself comfortable. It scanned the room for whoever placed the pentagram.

They had to do this now.

“British,” Dean huffed. Cas turned to Dean and Sam. He nodded before letting his hand fall.

They burst from their hiding spot, vaulting over the boxes and landing in front of the startled englishmen, their weapons raised. There was immediate panic as they rose from the couch and backed away.

“What the bloody hell!” the shorter man exclaimed.

The guards suddenly lunged for them but Castiel put them to sleep with a touch of his fingers. And before anyone could react, the three men had backed the group into a corner.

“It's over,” Cas growled at the demon.

“I don't know what you're talking about,” it exclaimed.

“What's going on Steven!” This time it was the taller, long faced man who spoke (Cas remembered Dean said something about his name).

“Nothing,” the demon wearing Steven insisted, “This must be some sort of misunderstanding.”

“I don't think so, hot shot,” Dean said and pointed his knife at the demon.

“Hold on, hold on!” Mark was the speaker’s name, Cas believed. “No one’s getting hurt here, we can settle this without violence.”

“Sorry dude but our deal’s with Stevey over here, not you,” Dean turned to the surprised celebrities and flicked his knife toward the corner of the room. “Benny Cucumber, Frodo, and the rest of you get in the corner and don’t move.”

“It’s Bilbo! If you’re going to insult me at least use the right name you git!”

“Hey shut it,” Dean threatened.

Now the demon stood alone with narrowed eyes and a scowl. It didn’t seem too perturbed by its apparent capture and it slowly turned its gaze to each of them. Finally, as it turned to Castiel, its eyes darkened to pools of black.

“Ah,” it exclaimed, “No wonder I was caught. You’ve got your little guardian angel with you.”

“What are you talking about Steven? This is nonsense —”

The demon rounded on its companions, eyes flashing and lips drawn in a snarl. “Yes, it is nonsense to your tiny little brains. I’ll deal with you once I’m done with them.”

The celebrities froze, staring in shock at their friend’s black eyes.

“This isn’t right, you’re not Steven!” Benedict shouted.

“Oh what a wonderful observation!”

“Hey, assbutt! Turn around and leave them alone.”

The creature slowly obeyed, an unnerving smile on its face.

“Winchesters. Let me guess, you’re here to smoke me out?”

“Oh, more than that,” Sam snickered.

“Oh really,” it laughed, “You'd harm this lovely new suit?”

“No,” Cas said in a dangerous tone, “But that won't be a problem.”

The angel raised his palm and his eyes began to glow an unnatural blue. Everyone stared at him in anticipation but before he was able to begin his exorcism, the demon flicked its wrist, sliding him into the wall. It hardly phased Cas and he merely spit out the blood in his mouth as he charged it again.

The brothers took that as their que to advance. They both ran forward, looking to stun the demon to give Cas ample time.

It snarled and backed up, knowing it wouldn't be able to take all three of them at once. Its confidence seemed to dwindle as it faced the three of them with weapons in hand.

Cas watched it as they advanced and he saw its eyes flash to the doors. It couldn't escape that way, so why was it looking around?

Suddenly there was a loud bang from down the hall; a gust of wind blew in. Everyone turned towards the sound and watched as black smoke began to pour in from the doors.

“Shit,” Dean gritted out.

The other demons swirled above them in a vortex, bearing down on them. But Cas only chuckled.

“Something funny?” The demon snapped at him and everyone looked back at them.

“Yes,” The angel looked at him with an amused gleam in his eyes, “I think you forgot something.”

Confusion spread across its face, then it sneered again.

“I'm an angel, and a fully powered one at that. Your soldiers can do nothing to me.”

“That's not true,” it hissed, “You have been weakened a hundred times over, there is no way you can recover.”

“Well one might call it a miracle.”

“You’re bluffing, kill them!”

The hoard swooped down, a whirlwind of black. But as they were about the envelop the area, they suddenly stopped, splashing against what seemed like an invisible barrier.

“I am not bluffing,” Castiel said coolly. The demon looked to him in shock, “Perhaps you should've considered the dangers before you planned a massacre.”

Castiel raised his hand again. This time the demon fell to its knees, covering its mouth with its hands.

“No!” It screamed as black smoke began to leak from its mouth.

Everyone watched as the demon trembled and shook, trying desperately to remain within its vessel. But finally, it tossed its head back and spewed a stream of black. The body fell to the floor, unmoving as the darkness hovered in the middle of the room.

Castiel kept his hand raised but turned to the other occupants in the room, “Close your eyes.”

A flash of bright light filled the room and a sharp screaming sound penetrated the air as energy blasted the room.

When the light died, a sizzling could be heard and black flecks, like ash, fell onto the wooden floor.

“Holy crap,” Sam breathed out. Everyone’s eyes were on Cas as he turned to the Winchesters, a faint gleam of grace still in his eyes.

“Did you kill them all?” Dean said in disbelief.

“Yes.”

“Freakin’ awesome!” Dean smiled at him with pride, and Cas felt a twinge of warmth pool in his chest.

“Thank you,” he said with a small smile of his own.

The three of them smiled at each other and let themselves take a moment to breathe.

“Is anyone going to tell us what the hell just happened!” Martin yelled at them from the other side of the room, a hand clutching his chest.

The trio sighed and looked back at the clearly shaken group of people.

“Is — is Steven okay?” One of them asked tentatively.

“Yes, he is alive,” Cas answered as he bent down to tap the man’s shoulder. Moffat took a sharp intake of breath and lifted his head.

“What — what's going on?”

“Steven!”

Cas helped the man to his feet and walked him over to the couch. His friends quickly joined him, making sure he was okay as Cas backed away.

They began to talk rapidly, trying to fill him in all at once — a slightly amusing sight.

“They just barged in here with knives —”

“And then they said —”

“ — you weren't you!”

Cas caught the words _smoke_ and _angel_ as well, but tuned them out to turn to Sam and Dean.

“So that's it, we’re done here,” Sam said with a sigh.

“Yeah,” Dean replied.

“That's too bad, I liked it here.”

“It was kinda fun,” Dean admitted as he pulled at the tie around his neck.

Cas smiled silently as he watched the brothers’ disappointed expressions. He slid the badge from around his neck and examined the dates on it.

“Well,” he said as he read it, “We don't have to go quite yet. According to this, there's still one more day of the convention.”

“Really? Sweet!” He saw Dean do a quiet fist pump and chuckled.

Then Cas felt someone tap his shoulder and turned to see Benedict standing in front of him.

“Um, I guess we should say thank you, though I'm not sure what happened,” he gave Cas a pleasant smile.

“Your welcome,” Cas nodded, “But I'm afraid you won't remember any of this.”

The actor frowned in confusion, “What?”

“For your own protection, I must erase your memories.”

Now the rest of the celebrities were staring at him as well.

“What do you mean? That's not possible,” Mark exclaimed.

“Neither was what you saw.”

They stayed silent as Castiel raised his hand again and watched as his palm glowed faintly. A blank look washed across their faces as the glow subsided. And one by one they blinked, their faces void of recognition. The security guards that had been lying on the ground slowly got up and looked around bewildered.

The stared at the three strange men in front of them and looked them up and down.

“Who are you?” one guard asked.

“We’re just checking in to make sure you guys are ready to go,” Dean lied with a friendly grin. He kept smiling until he realized that no one was replying to him. He looked around  and awkwardly started backing towards the hall. “Well it looks like you’re all good… so we’ll just go,” he waved towards Sam and Cas to follow him and they all left the uncomfortable stares of the celebrities behind them.

As they left, Cas heard them slide back into conversation.

“What was that about? That’s never happened at the other cons.”

“I don’t know, but does it smell funny in here to you?

“Yeah, it smells… burnt.”

“Wierd.”

Sam, Dean, and Cas disappeared down the hall and followed it until they reached the outside lobby. Dean blew out a long breath once they walked into the open and observed the long line of people still filing in to get to the Sherlock panel.

“They must sure be popular,” he said as they passed by.

“Of course,” Sam replied, “haven’t you ever heard of them? They’re some of the best british actors.”

“Huh, not really — I’m not a geek like you,” Dean smirked.

“Of course you're not,” Sam huffed, “That’s probably why you didn’t recognize Benedict Cumberbatch.”

“Why, is there a reason I should?”

“Yeah,” Sam shook his head at his brother’s ignorance, “He’s gonna be the new Doctor Strange, I thought that'd be up your alley.”

“Yeah well I said I’m a Marvel fan, not a Marvel nerd.”

“It’s the same thing Dean.”

Cas chuckled as he watched them go back and forth, which caught Dean’s attention and suddenly he found himself staring back into his green eyes. There were small crinkles at the corners that deepened as he smiled, and his smile now seemed to spread from ear to ear.

“Well, I’ve gotta say Cas, that was some awesome shit back there.”

“Thank you Dean. Sometimes I forget what it feels like to be a full angel again. It’s strange, to be back to the way things were. But it is definitely useful.”

“Definitely,” Dean smiled at him again. He had been very happy lately, but Cas was still trying to figure out why. And the joy was almost contagious, seeing Dean happy made Cas happy and for some reason, it also seemed the same in reverse. But he still wouldn’t confirm anything unless Dean told him himself. There was a part of him that wished for it to be true, but he tried not to be too hopeful.

“So what exactly did you do? Besides blow them to smithereens.”

“I held the demons that the leader had summoned and then exorcised him. Simple really. They are not very intelligent.”

“You can hold demons?”

“Of course.”

“Huh,” Dean smirked as his thoughts wandered, “I guess I just never knew what all you could do. You gotta tell me sometime.”

And it didn’t escape Cas’s notice how Sam looked at his brother with a puzzled expression. It was a rather odd request.

“You seem intrigued all of a sudden. What sparked your interest? You’ve never asked me about my powers before,” Castiel inquired.

Dean glanced away and paused before responding, “Just curious — and you’ve got you’re full superhero strength now?”

“Yes, why wouldn’t I?”

“Dunno,” Dean shrugged and continued onward.

Cas glanced over at Sam and found the younger Winchester very red in the face, looking after his brother.

“Is something wrong Sam?” Cas asked in concern. Sam just looked at him with wide eyes and coughed.

“Uh,” Sam was speechless for a few seconds before he swallowed and looked down. He seemed to be deep in thought and it wasn’t long before some sort of revelation hit him and he gasped. He looked up at Cas and then over at Dean, his mouth falling open. Again Cas looked at him with concern and searched his face for any more signs of distress.

“Sam? Something wrong?” Dean glanced back at his brother who just stared at him. There was a silent exchange as mixed emotions crossed over Dean’s face. But finally he just smirked at Sam and winked.

The angel frowned as Sam froze, completely taken aback by whatever Dean had just conveyed. Although Cas had known the Winchesters a long while, he still didn’t understand all of their behavior.

This time Sam snapped back to face Cas and spoke in a small voice, “Nothing Cas.” Then he hurried to catch up with Dean and left Cas to wander behind them. The angel watched the brothers exchange a few more strange expressions and tried to decipher what they could possibly mean. Whatever it was, Sam was very surprised about it.

Suddenly, Sam seemed to get angry about whatever they were discussing. “You didn't tell me!” he exclaimed.

“Just because you're my brother, doesn't mean I have to tell you everything.”

“But this is more than just about me, Dean,” Sam said in a hushed tone. Funny how they thought that would prevent him from hearing them. He _was_ right behind them.

Cas knew they usually had their own private conversations, but he still didn't like being kept out of things. “Is there something I could help with?” he butted in.

They both spun around, red at the ears, staring at him. “No!” they said in unison.

“We — we’re good Cas, but thanks for the offer — I mean —” Dean shut his mouth when Sam shot him a pointed stare. “Never mind,” Dean said and coughed. “God these clothes are hot! Or is it just me?” He started fanning himself with the lapels of his coat.

“It’s probably just you Dean,” Castiel said with a smirk, “I never have a problem with them, but that’s probably because I’m not affected by temperature.”

“Whatcha tryin’ to say there Cas?” Dean laughed it off as he eventually decided to leave the coat on.

Cas knew what the statement insinuated and he was happy to play along.

“Exactly what you think it means,” he tilted his head and raised one corner of his mouth in a smile. He knew yesterday this kind of teasing would’ve made Dean stutter and blush to the point where he couldn’t talk, but he wanted to see what Dean would do now.

It resulted in Dean snapping his head up in surprise while Sam made a strangled choking noise. The older hunter had his gaze frozen on Cas. Was what he said all that alarming? Dean blinked a couple of times and searched his face for any hint of what that might’ve meant. Cas was watching him too, as Dean’s face displayed several phases of emotion, all within a couple of seconds: surprise, hope, doubt, and confusion.

What did it mean?

The moment ended when Sam let out a huge dramatic sigh and rolled his eyes. “Really guys,” he mumbled as he pinched the bridge of his nose, “You’re so stupid…”

Cas frowned at him. That couldn’t possibly mean what he thought it did. Were they both stupid in the the way he was thinking? He may not be the best at catching onto things but he had learned how to take a hint.

He gazed back at Dean, this time his eyes wide with dismay. He stared hard at him, compiling all that he knew about the man in his mind to try and discover the truth. His mannerisms - right now he seemed nervous and just a little bit scared, and his eyes contained that ever softening look that had grown brighter over time. He knew Dean never looked at anybody else like that anymore, besides him. He had always thought it just a token of their close friendship. But being out of touch of human behavior could’ve made him blind to certain things.

This time he swallowed nervously and looked down. He could let himself hope, because now he knew, now that he had thought about it, that he really _really_ did value Dean more than anything else. But did that mean he loved him in the way he knew they were both thinking? Angels weren’t supposed to be capable of that kind of love. What if he could never love Dean in the way he wanted, because he simply couldn’t.

He had broken those barriers in the past. Angels weren’t supposed to feel _any_ emotion, period, yet look where he was. But again, it all came down to whether Dean wanted this, or if it was all in his head. And now he was back to his original conclusion, _if_ Dean… _loved_ him, then he would wait for Dean. He would wait — and could wait, forever.

But somehow, that thought only made him sad. Would he really have to wait forever? He had never experienced this sort of love before, it was all new to him — and it was scary. He’d never thought this through. If it went wrong, what would they do? He couldn’t lose Dean, he just couldn’t. It would drive him insane.

His thoughts were interrupted by Dean’s soft voice.

“Hey,” he spoke in a tentative tone, his eyes still on Cas, “If you guys are hungry we could go get lunch.”

“That sounds good,” Sam answered for them.

Dean let his gaze linger for a little longer before turning to lead the way. Cas knew that look, they were definitely going to talk later. And this was what he had wanted earlier, but now he was the one feeling nervous instead of Dean — or were they both nervous? Knowing Dean, he probably was.

 

 

Dean stared down at his empty food tray as he waited in line for food. It was a tan plastic thing that had probably be washed a million times in the past couple days alone. He scratched at it.

Tan. Tan like the coat he was wearing around his shoulders or like the angel’s standing next to him.

It was like a dance between them now, one of them would look up to examine the other while they weren't looking or would try and catch the other’s eye for just a couple moments to see if they gave anything away. So far, they seemed pretty equally interested. But that could be Dean’s misinterpretation.

God! He needed to stop doubting himself, he’d known this guy for a decade for crying out loud. How much more evidence did he need? He was a chicken, a freakin’ sissy. He’d sworn he’d tell him and like hell if he was going to break that promise!

“What would you like sir?”

Dean blinked and looked up at the waitress.

“Oh um,” he quickly double-checked the menu, “Double cheeseburger for me, a hamburger for him, and… why the hell not, a chocolate milkshake.”

He waited for the food before both him and Cas headed back to their table. Sam had decided to get something healthy again, but at least it wasn’t salad.

He tried to focus on his food as they ate silently, the tension between them almost tangible. He caught Sam glancing between them several times and had eventually glared at him to tell him to leave it alone. But that didn’t seem to really work.

Since Sam had the least amount of food, he finished pretty quickly, leaving his mouth open for talking. “So what do you guys wanna do tomorrow? We could check out a couple panels and maybe get something to bring back to the bunker.” Dean and Cas stared up at him and simply nodded.

Sam looked annoyed at their silence and sighed, taking another sip of his drink.

“I thought I saw some cool merch back where Cas was yesterday,” Dean added after he took another bite. “And don't forget, we _are_ going to the beach.” Sam gave a huff of laughter but kept drinking.

Then they became silent again and Dean glanced up at Cas as he munched on his burger. It was kinda funny seeing him doing stuff that was so human.

His hair was floofed to the side, like it had been a decade ago. He kinda missed that look, all messy and rebellious. But he liked him now too. It didn't really matter.

By the time Dean realized he'd been staring at Cas, it was too late, and the angel looked up to meet his gaze.

“Something interesting Dean?”

Oh shit, distraction — what could he say? He looked around and took a sip of his chocolate milkshake. Ah man, Cas had never had chocolate had he? Well that was a good distraction.

“You ever had chocolate Cas?” Oh now he just sounded stupid.

Cas looked surprised at the question and stopped eating.

“No…” he said in a tentative tone.

“Here,” Dean slid his cup over to him. Cas looked at it and slowly grabbed it. He stared and it and then back at Dean.

Dean sighed, “You’re supposed to drink it genius.”

Cas let out a quiet “oh” and pursed his lips around the straw. It took him a minute to have a decent slurp of it and at first he seemed confused about the taste. Then his eyes widened and he took another sip and another.

“You like it?” Dean chuckled as he watched him.

The angel nodded vigorously and took one last drink before handing it back over. Dean laughed again, the tension somewhat lessening.

“Here,” he fished a couple dollars out of his pocket, “Go get yourself one.”

"Thank you," he said, accepting the money. Then got up to hurry back over to the line.

Dean watched him go, his trench coat trailing behind him, and felt that now all too familiar sensation filling his chest again.

“Ehem…” Sam coughed behind him.

“What?”

“Are you kidding me? You were totally acting like a love sick teen, I swear!”

“I was not!”

“Really? You shared your drink with him. You even used the same straw.”

“Hey, I honestly don't care about the cootie thing. I mean he’s an angel for god’s sake! He can’t possibly —”

“That's not the point here!”

“Then what is?”

“Dean I swear to god, if you don't tell him I'm going to kick your ass.”

“Of course I'm going to tell him,” Dean said in a more hushed tone, “Just not now.”

“How did you even figure it out? You've denied it forever and all of a sudden you're openly flirting with him.”

“It's — It’s complicated.”

Sam gave him his usual bitchface, “Our whole lives are complicated.”

“I just — just,” he stammered, trying to think of an explanation. “I just figured it out. It took me forever but… I realized that I had never considered it because of the way we live, ya know. But now — now I can, I don't have to worry about losing everyone because — everything is better now.”

Sam looked at him with understanding and waited for him to continue.

“I didn't know. I don't know how I didn't see it — he's the greatest friend I've ever had. And — and I need him Sam. God! I don't know what I'd do without him and just — I want him to stay and he has so far, I just hope he thinks it's worth it.”

He heard Sam sigh and looked up at his brother to see him contemplating his explanation.

“Dean,” Sam said in his comforting voice, “We both know Cas enjoys our company. Do you think he’d be here if he didn’t?”

Dean shook his head but said nothing.

“And… I think Cas might —”

“Might what?”

“He might… you know, like you too.”

Dean stared at him skeptically, “And how would you know?”

Sam just shook his head and laughed, “Dean, you’d be surprised how obvious it is.”

“Really?”

Sam smiled and nodded. Which was somehow very comforting. He looked back when he heard footsteps coming towards the table and saw Cas returning with milkshake in hand. Damn, it was kinda cute. The angel sat back down and was content to chug down the entire drink without saying a word.

Dean grinned as he thought back to the brothel during the old apocalypse days. That had been a good laugh, and Cas had been so innocent of human things at the time. He knew a lot more now and it was nice to see how far he’d come.

By the time Cas was done, Dean had finished with his burger and was pleasantly full. He sighed and started cleaning up their area when Cas decided to speak.

“Dean,” he said in a questioning tone.

“Yes Cas?”

“You mentioned that it is common for people to cosplay at these events, would you mind if I do so?”

Dean looked at him in surprise but laughed, “Sure, what’d you be Cas?”

There was a strange gleam in his friend’s eyes as he looked at him, “You’ll see.”

“Do you need to buy anything?”

“No,” the angel had a slight smile on his lips and glanced at Sam who also seemed intrigued. “I already have what I need.”

“Like with you?”

“Back at the hotel, I can go back now.”

“Well,” Dean chuckled, “I’m interested to see what you’ll be.”

Cas, to Dean’s surprise, gave him a once over before disappearing, leaving him standing to ponder. And if Sam was right, then that shouldn't have been a shock to him.

He turned to his brother and shrugged, “Well, I wasn’t expecting Cas to wanna dress up.”

“Hey, you’re dressed up so…”

“Yeah but I’m dressed as him.” He loosened his tie as he talked and tried to air out the collar area, it really was a warm outfit.

“You know, if both of you are gonna dress up then maybe I’ll get something too.”

Dean smiled at the thought, “Yeah, you know I can’t remember the last time we dressed up. It must’ve been Halloween, years ago.”

Sam smiled back, “You always liked to go as superheroes.”

“I bet I still have a costume lying around somewhere.”

Sam opened his mouth as if to say more, but then he jumped and stared at something behind Dean. “Well that was quick —” he said instead.

Dean turned in his seat and stopped to gape at Cas’s new attire. He stared with his mouth open and stood up in surprise. “No. No, no, no. You go change back right now!”

“Why?” Cas looked at him with a smug grin as he put his hands in his jeans pockets. They were ripped and accompanied with a standard Winchester flannel, jacket and boots. “You dressed as me, so why can’t I dress as you?”

"What the hell Cas? Is that my jacket? And my pants?!" Dean ignored Cas’s question as he took a closer look at the clothing. Everything was just a little bit too big for him, but his broad chest and shoulders seemed to fill out the outfit just fine. Those were definitely his clothes.

“Well it occurred to me recently that you left your clothes back at the hotel when you came as me. So, I thought I’d borrow them.”

“Oh you bastard,” Dean murmured as he heard Sam trying and failing to hold back his laughter. He should’ve seen this coming. Cas was definitely learning from them, both the good and bad qualities.

But also... seeing Cas in his clothes was not the worst thing to look at. In fact they looked good on him — _really_ good on him. Oh god, he shouldn’t be thinking about that here in public.

His interest in Cas’s new look must’ve been obvious because the angel raised an eyebrow at him and stared with that teasing upward quirk of his lips. Dean felt himself redden again and quickly turned his gaze. He started vigorously clearing the table again and only looked up when everything was in the trash.

The angel was still looking at him with interest and Dean felt a twist in his gut.

He tentatively looked him in the eyes again, “What? Okay I get it, taste of my own medicine and stuff.”

“Precisely,” Cas said and grinned.

“You're not gonna let me off are you?”

“Nope.”

Dean sighed, ran a hand over his face and laughed.

“What, am I making you uncomfortable?” Cas said in a teasing tone.

“Wait — wait a minute,” Sam giggled as he silently took out his phone, “I haven’t taken a picture yet.”

“Oh no, no, no you don’t!”

“Too late.”

There was a click and Sam quickly lifted the phone out of Dean’s reach as his brother lunged for it.

“Let me see it!”

“No,” Sam smiled as he fiddled with the device again.

“Now what are you doing?” Dean demanded.

“Here,” Sam tossed Dean the phone and his brother quickly grabbed it, “Now you can look at it.”

“What did you do?” Dean glared at his brother suspiciously.

“Oh, I just sent it to Cas, that way even if you delete it off my phone, we’ll still have the picture.”

As if on cue, the phone in Cas’s pocket dinged and the angel pulled it out to looked at the picture. “It’s actually not a bad picture Dean,” he grinned down at it. “It’ll be a nice memento.”

Dean frowned at Cas and then looked at the phone in his hands. He was right though, it was a nice picture. It had nice lighting and it was just of the two of them looking at each other - albeit in confusion and smug amusement, capturing the hilarity of the moment. But he was never going to admit that.

“Fine,” Dean huffed and shoved the device back into Sam's hands, “You can play all you want, it’s not like you haven't been doing it all weekend.” He crossed his arms and frowned grumpily.

“Oh please,” Sam huffed, “You need to loosen up.”

“Yes, or as you would say, take that stick out of your ass,” Castiel said with a hint of amusement.

Dean recoiled slightly, he did not expect that from Cas.

“Hey, I do not say that.”

“You very much do Dean.”

“Well that’s only when you’re being an ass.”

“When I’m being an ass?” Cas smirked, “As far as I know, you’re the one that has that recurring problem Dean.”

“Well you’re being an ass right now.”

“Can we just stop talking about asses!” Sam called out between them and they both looked over a him, a bit embarrassed. “Gosh, you two argue like a married couple,” he mumbled.

Dean felt himself blush again. Why was this becoming a frequent problem? Maybe if Sam would stop hinting at what he already knew — then he wouldn’t have to worry about Cas staring at him, like right now.

“Okay,” Sam breathed out when neither of them bothered to continue. “I need to go get my costume so… Do you guys wanna go check out the merch?”

“Yes please!” Dean thanked the lord that they could end this conversation and followed his brother out of the food court.

 

 

The costume that Sam wanted didn’t take much time to find. He merely bought a Superman outfit, a cape and some nerd glasses for his Clark Kent disguise. After that, they were back at the hotel in no time.

Dean didn’t say much on the way back, and Cas knew there was something big on his mind. And he also knew that when they got back, there was a high likelihood that Dean would want to talk to him. Why he was dreading this was unclear to him. It was just Dean, he shouldn’t be afraid. But uncertainty and doubt were fickle fiends that unraveled his perfectly logical plan.

He just needed to ask Dean one simple question. That was it. It would be a simple yes or no and then he would decide what to do from there. He could do this, he _could_ do this.

There was a nagging at the pit of his stomach that grew more and more bothersome as they drew nearer to their room. The door clicked open and they finally made their way inside.

Dean was trying to be discreet in grabbing his attention, but the pointed glances became so obvious to the point that Sam eventually coughed and turned towards the bathroom.

“I’m just gonna...yeah,” he closed the door and the sound of water could be heard from inside. And of course this left Cas and Dean standing alone in the room.

Both of them seemed reluctant to speak, and to Cas’s surprise, Dean seemed even more nervous than he did. So he sighed and decided to speak up first.

“Dean…” he said cautiously, “There’s something I want to talk to you about.”

Dean swallowed dryly. “Yeah, me too Cas.”

“It might seem… odd of me to ask but…” Cas paused and tried to think of how to approach this without Dean (or him) freaking out. “We’ve known each other a long time Dean...and I would never do or say anything that might threaten that… but I need to know something.”

Dean was staring at him wide-eyed, seemingly frozen. “Oh my god…” he heard the Winchester breathe out in a barely audible whisper. He stepped closer to the angel, cautiously moving forward and leaving Cas between him and the bed. When he stopped, he was in what Dean had warned him was ‘personal space.’ Dean always complained about him doing it, so why was Dean breaking his own rule? It left them eye to eye with each other and Cas could hear Dean’s short, almost panicked breathing. “I… I need to ask you something too.”

Dean was right there, face to face with him and he looked scared as all hell. He licked his lips and Cas was close enough to count the freckles on his nose and cheeks.

“Cas you're my best friend and… I like having you around — it’s I — I…” He swallowed again and growled in frustration, “Dammit!”

Cas felt his breath catch in his chest as he stared at the man in front of him. Dean was acting the same way he felt right now. They were both nervous, skittish as hell, and trying to say something that seemed hard to get out.

“Dean…” Cas stopped him as Dean struggled with more words, “Is what we are trying to say possibly the same thing?”

Dean blinked at him, completely taken aback. He just gaped, speechless as the possibility ran through his mind.

“Are — are you sure?”

“Maybe?”

Dean laughed nervously, “Oh god that’s not a helpful answer.”

“I know, I’m sorry.”

“There’s no need to be sorry Cas.” Dean dared to lean in closer. “You never need to be sorry, it’s usually my fault anyways.”

Neither of them made a move, each too scared to take one more step. Cas vaguely recognized the sound of the door opening. Everything else in the world seemed nonexistent, like they were encompassed in their own little bubble. Dean didn’t react either.

Cas only comprehended the noise when he saw Sam standing behind Dean, a wicked smile on his face. He saw Dean jolt as Sam pushed his brother from behind. Dean went wide eyed as he fell forward, falling on top of the angel. It was so quick that they both grabbed at each other to try and prevent themselves from toppling over. But it just ended up with Dean’s face smashing into Cas’s and Dean pinning the angel underneath him. It lasted no more than a couple seconds, but Cas swore he felt Dean’s lips brush his as they fell.

They stared at each other for a good five seconds before they seemed to recognize what had happened. Dean immediately went beet red, blinking in dismay before struggling to untangle himself from Cas.

“SAAAAAAAM!!!” Dean yelled, shaking with anger.

And that was Sam’s cue to run from the hotel at top speed. He threw open the door and dashed for the parking lot, Dean cursing and following close behind him.

“I’m going to put glue in your hair and then pour some fucking glitter in it and cut it off myself!! You little bitch, get back here!”

And just like that they disappeared, leaving Castiel lying in complete shock on the bed. He slowly sat up, surprised at how quickly the whole thing had taken place, and let out the breath he didn’t know he’d been holding.

So, Sam had pushed them, and Dean had fallen on top of him and may or may not have accidentally kissed him. Oh but he definitely did. Cas gingerly pressed his fingers to his lips.

Soft, he was so soft. And although it was awkward on Dean’s part, it had not been all too unpleasant. But they had been so close to saying it, or at least it had seemed that way. If only Sam had left him alone. Oh and now he was angry at Sam.

But that was okay, this was progress. He just needed to get Dean alone again, but this time _really_ alone. He could wait just a little bit longer.

And he felt himself smile, a happiness blooming in his chest.

So close.

 

 

Out of simple courtesy, Cas left the room before the boys got back, but he could still hear them while he waited in the interdimensional plane. Dean was practically fuming, dragging Sam behind him and it was obvious that they had wrestled at some point. There was dust and gravel in both of their hair so Cas assumed Sam must've gotten pretty far.

Whatever words that Dean had said to Sam had barely even dented his amusement. So the older brother just grumbled all the way over to his bed and crashed on it, turning his back on his brother. Sam just huffed and did the same thing.

It didn't take long for Sam to fall asleep but Dean stayed up for several hours. Cas began to pity him when he observed his tense shoulders and the anxious energy rolling off of him. He waited for him to eventually fall asleep but Dean didn't relax.

Finally, Cas sighed and hovered over Dean, allowing his grace to flow over him. The effect was immediate and Dean’s eyes fell closed, finally gifting him with the relief of sleep.

Cas folded his wings and landed his vessel beside the bed. It was pleasantly quiet inside the room with only the sound of the brothers’ breathing.

He leaned down over Dean and gently pulled the blanket up higher around his shoulders.  The man took a deep breath and fell deeper into his sleep. Cas let a small smile spread over his face before softly making his way over to the chair on the other side of the room. He knew Dean didn’t like him standing over him, so he would wait elsewhere.

Cas sunk down into the chair and sighed. He would have to wait for the brothers to wake up and there were still several hours until sunrise. He got comfortable and simply closed his eyes. He knew he couldn't sleep but he could meditate in a dreamlike state. It was close enough.

 

He was shaken out of his trance when he heard the sheets move and a yawn from the nearest bed. He opened his eyes and saw Dean stretch as he sat up, his hair messy and wearing the same clothes as yesterday (but now with quite a few more wrinkles).

Dean rubbed his hands over his eyes and groaned as he got up. He slowly turned around and froze when he saw the angel.

“Oh,” he looked at him in surprise, “Heya Cas.” His voice was gravely from sleep.

“Hello Dean,” Cas met his gaze with a welcoming nod.

“You know it's kinda weird that you're still wearing my clothes.”

Cas’s lips quirked in a small smile, “And the same to you.”

“Oh yeah,” Dean looked down at himself, “I forgot about that.” He stood in silence for a while before thinking of anything else to say. “Did you sleep there all night?”

“Yes, but more like mediating.”

“Didn't know you could do that.”

“It is a strange concept, more like the equivalent of a short hibernation.”

“Huh neat,” Dean hummed. And then he snapped his head up and looked at Cas, wide-eyed. Cas was pretty sure he was remembering the night before. He flushed but said nothing and simply headed over to the kitchen. Cas got up and followed suit, helping Dean prepare for the morning.

Sam woke shortly after, all bushy haired and tired, but mostly coherent.

But not coherent enough to notice the salt that Dean had poured in his cup. It had resulted in sputtering and an exchange of curses, but Sam was still not up to fighting about it. He knew why he deserved it.

After breakfast, they headed over to the convention center and walked around for hours. It was quite fun to look at and see everything in its full glory, now that they had nothing to worry about. They were asked for more pictures and even said hi to Rebecca on their way past the table. She had smiled and laughed when she saw Dean and Cas’s swap of attire and Sam’s tight Superman suit. He stood out like a sore thumb between the three of them.

They were about to walk away when Dean suddenly stopped and leaned to look over at something on the table.

“Are those tattoos?”

“Yup,” she picked up one of the anti possession symbols and held it out to him. He examined it, nodded and took out his wallet.

“But we already have real ones,” Sam said.

“Yeah,” Dean flashed his brother a grin, “But he doesn’t.” He nodded towards Cas who stared at him as he approached and handed him the piece of paper. “You’re missing part of your outfit dude,” Dean smiled at him.

Cas grinned at him and took the paper, “And you’re still have the wrong shoes.”

Dean  just laughed, “Whatever. Here let’s go to the bathroom and gets this on ya.”

Castiel frowned and looked at Dean questioningly as they left the table, “And why would we need to go to the bathroom to do that?”

“Oh,” Dean flushed and looked down at his shoes, “You just need to get the paper wet on your skin and press on it, then it sticks. I — I was going to get a paper towel.”

“Oh, that makes more sense.”

Dean huffed, “Ten years and you're still learning. Don’t worry, you’ll get there.” He patted the angel on the shoulder as he led him to the bathroom.

The process was just as easy as Dean had made it sound, but the thing he hadn’t specified was that it required touching.

“Here, pull down your shirt a bit.”

“What?” Cas looked at him, dismayed.

“So I can get it in the right spot, don’t make this weird.”

Well, they had both failed at that. Although Cas knew they were both ignoring what happened last night, it would have to come up eventually. And this definitely didn’t help.

“Just hold still,” Dean told him. Cas did what he was told and held still while Dean applied the tattoo. Dean pressed it to the skin underneath his left collarbone and slowly dragged the wet towel across it several times before peeling it away.

The flaming star was left, whole and black against his tan skin.

“Nice,” Dean admired his handiwork and tossed the wet paper in the trash, “Now you’ve got a real tattoo.”

“What do you mean?” Cas scrutinized him, “I already have one.”

“You — you do?” Dean looked at him in shock.

“Yes, I’ve had it ever since I was human,” Cas lifted up his shirt to reveal the enochian spell written on the left side of his torso.

“Oh — wow,” Dean stared at the tattoo. “So uh, what does it say.”

“It’s an enochian spell to hide me from the senses of other angel’s, similar to the ones on your ribs.”

“Oh yeah, forgot about those,” Dean continued to stare and ran a hand over his mouth. Cas let his shirt fall back down. That seemed to snap Dean out of whatever he was thinking about and he coughed and rubbed the back of his neck.

“So uh, there you go…” Dean seemed a little embarrassed but Cas didn’t think a tattoo was anything to get worked up over. They couldn’t talk here, so if that was what was bothering Dean, Cas hoped he would just let it go for now.

“Dean,” Cas tried to sound soothing, “It’s fine, thank you.”

Cas wasn’t sure exactly what _it_ was but his words seemed to bring at least some relief to Dean.

“You’re welcome Cas,” Dean said quietly, his eyes studying Cas’s face for a moment too long. Cas returned the stare with a confused squint before the Winchester swallowed and averted his eyes to the floor. Dean took a breath and coughed, working his throat which didn’t seem to want to speak. He finally glanced up, carefully meeting Cas’s eyes again. The angel waited for him to speak, but Dean only opened and closed his mouth a couple times before giving up and finally gesturing towards the door. “After you,” he mumbled. Castiel frowned at Dean’s confusing behavior, but followed the hunter’s suggestion and headed out the door. They filed out and met Sam in the hall before continuing on.

They walked the entirety of the building, not bothering to go to any panels yet because they were perfectly fine out here with the merchandise. Sam made the comment that by the time they were done, they’d have enough souvenirs to fill the bunker, but he didn’t seem to mind.

It was funny to watch the Winchesters shopping around like kids in a toy store. Dean grabbed a Han Solo action figure and a Sting replica to hang in his room, because it looked cool, he said. But Cas knew Dean really did like the Lord of the Rings, he just wouldn’t admit it.

Sam bought a fancy book outlining the Star Trek universe. Dean had laughed but glanced over his brother’s shoulder to look at it nonetheless.

“Aren’t you gonna get something Cas?” Dean approached him once they had finished picking out their items, bags in hand.

“I didn’t realize I was supposed to be looking for something,” he replied.

“Ah come on, get something,” Dean encouraged, “We don’t get to come here every year.”

“You sure?”

“Yes, go ahead. This isn’t even my money anyway.”

Cas nodded and looked around at the objects on display. He didn’t want to take too long, since the brothers were already waiting for him. Something simple was always good.

He scanned the area and observed all of his options, a perk of regaining his angelic abilities. When Cas finally found some things that caught his eye, he knew that he was most definitely going to buy them. He walked passed Dean and headed toward a table at the end of the hall, another small area that wasn’t too crowded. The angel picked up the items that he wanted and promptly purchased them without hesitation. Then, smiling, he turned back to the Winchesters.

“What’d ya get?” Dean asked.

Cas just gave him the bag and waited for his reaction. His smile only grew when Dean slowly withdrew a single mug from the bag. Dean looked at it in confusion and then squinted to read the words and design on it. Dean let out a snort and looked up at Cas.

The mug had a pair of black wings and a halo above the words _Angel of the Lord_.

“You really know how to pick ‘um huh?” Dean held the mug up to Sam and his brother smiled.

“There’s more in the bag,” Cas commented and watched Dean draw out two more mugs.

“Really Cas?” Dean gave him an exasperated look, but Cas could see the gleam in his eye. One mug was decorated with antlers and the word _moose_ , while the other had a tail and ears with the word _squirrel_ on the front.

“It came as a set,” Cas retorted, “You can’t just get one.”

Dean shook his head but conceded and handed the bag back to Cas.

“This is fun,” Cas said as they proceeded.

“Good,” Dean grinned, “It’s about time we had some.”

The rest of the convention went by perfectly. They managed to catch one last Star Wars panel before the end of the day and they left the building feeling happier than they had in a long while. It was all laughs on the way back to the hotel and there seemed to be no way this could get any better.

They returned to their rooms and sat watching soap operas for god knows how many hours, with Sam in one bed and Dean and Cas in the other. It was when a fun, sunny beach scene came up that Dean shot up out of bed.

“Oh yeah! We need to go to the beach tomorrow!” Dean exclaimed as he turned to Cas. The angel had almost forgotten Dean’s vow to drag him to the ocean. “I’m not leaving without us getting our toes wet.”

“Okay,” was all he managed to say.

“We can go early and see if we can’t beat the traffic,” Sam pitched in.

“Sounds good,” Dean said with a grin.

After that, they turned back to the television, but they didn’t last long. The brothers passed out within the hour and Cas was left awake. He got up, turned off the television and shed his (Dean’s) jacket. Then he lay back down on the bed next to Dean and rolled over, facing away from him. He’s sure Dean wouldn't mind too much if they shared a bed, and — well, Dean wasn’t awake to make that decision. Plus the bed was much comfier than the chair.

He kept to his side of the bed and let his mind doze, lulling himself deeper and deeper into a meditative state with his thoughts. This weekend was one of the greatest he had shared with the Winchesters, that he was sure of. What he wasn’t so sure of was what this weekend had meant for him and Dean. There was still tomorrow for them to possibly discuss things — and the next day and the next. But Cas was starting to feel impatient, a trait he usually didn’t associate himself with.

But that was tomorrow. Right now, he could close his eyes and listen to the sound of breathing beside him as he waited for the sun to rise.

 

 

The beach was way better than Dean had originally pictured it. He wasn’t particularly fond of the salty taste in the air but the weather was gorgeous. The sun was out and shining down on the rolling waves. The sand was warm and the light breeze was just enough to keep things from being too hot. That and he had his brother and best friend with him, definitely a bonus.

They had been able to stop by a store earlier that morning and purchase some swim shorts. And Dean was glad he had already brought sunscreen because he didn’t want to have to bother with all that SPF stuff.

Right now he lay stretched out on a foldable chair, sunglasses propped on his nose and lathered in sunscreen (he already had enough freckles). His hands rested behind his head as he looked out onto the foaming water and took in the view.

Children were running around while their parents relaxed on towels and under umbrellas. Sam and Cas were next to Dean, resting in adjacent positions. It was the perfect little family vacation.

Finding Castiel a pair of shorts had been a little tedious. The angel had been confused by the swimwear section and had asked about nearly every item on the shelf. When Cas reached the speedos, Dean just sighed and dragged him to the dressing room “No, those aren't underwear you swim in.” He'd given him a blue pair of swim trunks and told him to see if they fit.

They did, and Cas had walked out of the room with the shorts still on, which was almost too much of a temptation. Dean had quickly told him to get changed before he could turn any redder.

And that's why he intentionally tried not to look at Cas now. He wanted to enjoy this time and not focus on the spread of tan skin and hard muscle lying in front of him. Cas was actually in pretty good shape, but Dean guessed that only surprised him because he generally didn't see Cas in anything less than three layers.

It's not that he was chickening out (because he was getting stupidly anxious), it's just that he didn't know if Cas would be comfortable with it. _Liking_ each other was one thing but having sexual desires was another issue he didn’t like to bring up yet. Cas may not even like the idea, which he could live with if it worked out.

But first he had to ask, dammit! If only Sam hadn't — oh he couldn't even think about it right now, it made him so angry. His stupid brother should worry about his own stupid relationships and stay out of his — and he wasn't even sure if it was _that_ kind of relationship. He needed to stop thinking. Beaches were for relaxing, not stressing.

He took a deep breath and enjoyed the waves of relaxing warmth that rolled across him from the sea. The sand was soft in between his toes and he took another sip of his beer.

Cas was sitting cross legged on the sand to the right of him, his hair tousled slightly by the wind as he stared out at the water, unmoving. He didn't wear sunglasses because he didn't need them, and somehow his eyes still stood out amongst everything else. Blue, so fucking blue, even the sea couldn't compare.

It made Dean happy, seeing him so calm and peaceful. There was an unnatural serenity about him that made everything better. His smile was so bright and just… everything, everything about him. And he was always there to make him smile.

Man, he was so corny.

But these feelings, shit, he _needed_ to do this. Cas — he needed to do it. What if Cas was waiting for him.

Come on, man up Winchester!

He had decided today would be the day, with the beach mood and all. But he needed to get Cas alone, and specifically away from Sam. Okay, now he was getting really _really_ nervous. Dean needed to do this before his nerves shut off his brain.

The water stretched out in front of him and he suddenly remembered that Cas hadn’t really swam before. It looked refreshing and come to think of it, he hadn’t swam in a while either. He sighed and slowly sat up in his chair, then stretched his arms up over his head and curled the ends of his toes. Cas looked over at him and Dean didn’t miss the quick once over he got. Well that made him feel a bit better about this (and a tiny bit self-conscious).

“Wanna go for a swim?” he asked to no one in particular.

Sam lazily turned his head and paused before responding, “I’m pretty good right here, I’ll go in a bit later.”

Dean silently let out a sigh of relief. Then he shrugged and looked at Cas, “You coming?”

Castiel gazed out onto the water and gave the faintest smile, “Yes.”

“Good, cause if there’s a shark in there I’m relying on you to get me out.”

“You’ve seen way too many movies Dean,” Sam huffed and lay back down.

“Hey I don’t have my knife, I’ve gotta compromise. Come on Cas.”

He took off his glasses and started to make his way down the sand and waited for Cas to follow. The angel stood and brushed the excess sand on his shorts. Oh god, those calves.

Dean jogged down to the shoreline because fuck it, he wanted to see what the ocean felt like. The moment his feet hit wet sand he felt a smile creep onto his face. He’d been to lakes before but never the beach, he felt like a giddy kid again.

“You look happy,” Cas commented as he paused beside him.

“Yeah,” Dean grinned and wriggled his toes in the sand, “I’ve never been to the beach before.”

The corner of Cas’s mouth elevated slightly and his eyes were on Dean again, “I remember when this beach was formed. It took many years but eventually the water ground the rock into grains and carved out the seabed.”

“Kinda neat, that all this came from one lonely hunk of rock.”

“It was not lonely,” Cas gazed out onto the sea, “My brothers were there and the ocean was full of life. Fish and microorganisms that still had many millennia before they evolved onto land.”

“Aren’t you the master historian,” Dean teased.

“Of course, I know all human history. I was there,” there was a trace of nostalgia in his rough voice and Dean took the time to look out on the sea as well.

Wow, Cas had been here when this was formed — hell he was here before the earth was born. Castiel was an immense being of unfathomable brilliance and magnitude. Dean couldn’t even look at his true form without his eyeballs being fried. Cas was just — awesome, in all senses of the word. He was millions of years old and had seen so many wonderful things that humans could only dream of. And yet he decided to spend his time here —on this little hunk of rock floating in space. Why? Was he really worth the attention of this brilliant, loving creature — a _real life_ angel.

Dean took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He couldn’t think of Cas like that. Cas wasn’t just an angel, he was Dean’s friend. They had talked together, they had fought together, and nearly died together — so why couldn’t they _be_ together?

Cas was more than just an angel, he was a person who could make his own decisions. Cas could decide what he wanted. All Dean needed to do was ask. And that started with Dean getting up the nerve to talk.

“Well,” he turned to face the angel, “Are we gettin’ in or not?”

Cas nodded and began to wade into the water. He was cautious about it, almost as if he might step on a fish at any moment. Which was probably true, knowing how many tiny invisible creatures were in the ocean — although Dean prefered not to think about them.

Dean followed and ignored the cold water as it rose up to his waist. Eventually they got to a place where their feet barely touched the ground. Dean let his feet lift off and drifted with the tide.

“This is awesome,” Dean exclaimed as he felt the push and pull of the water.

Cas floated calmly beside him and coaxed the water back and forth with his hand, fascinated. “I have never gone into the ocean either,” he said quietly, “I’ve always watched and waited, but never touched.”

Dean watched curiously as the angel let the water slide through his fingers, looking too gentle and delicate for what he was. It had always surprised Dean how kind Castiel could be. After all of his experience and his power, Dean didn’t know why Cas would want something as simple as this — as simple as them. He supposed it was the same reason why he had wanted a normal life. It hadn’t worked out for him, but he understood the desire for peace and simplicity. War could change a man, or an angel.

Dean was so fixed on the way Cas was stroking his hand through the water that he almost missed the nervous glance that the angel threw his way. He kept forgetting that Cas always knew when something was going on. Cas had known him too long not to have noticed.

“This is nice, isn’t it,” Dean muttered and carefully watched him. Cas was observing the water with interest but still inclined his head to listen.

“Yes, it is,” Castiel didn’t look at Dean but continued to churn the water. Dean was getting a weird vibe from him and he wasn’t sure if it was good or bad. How would he approach this?

“You know,” Cas started before Dean could speak, “There are many beautiful things that have formed in the ocean. Coral reefs, vibrant wildlife, and even your early ancestors. But there are also many things that humans have found frightening in them. The sea is so deep that no man has ever touched its darkest depths. There are many things still hidden and yet to be found. It might be scary but the discovery is always extraordinary, as I have learned with time.” Cas sighed and finally met Dean’s gaze, “Wouldn’t it be nice to find something like that?”

“Yeah, I guess it would,” Dean said in almost a whisper.

“The earth actually used to have only one ocean,” Cas continued and looked down again, “It wasn’t until the waters lowered and the land referred to as Pangea appeared and divided, that new currents began to appear.”

“Hey Cas,” Dean settled his feet on the ground again and strode closer.

“I was quite confused by the helicoprion, I’m sure Father was just experimenting with anatomical structures but —”

“Cas.”

The angel looked up and blinked, “Yes Dean.” Cas’s voice had gone quiet — soft as he waited. He looked like he was holding his breath, pausing in anticipation, lips parted in a silent question. Dean couldn’t help himself. Without thinking he walked forward. It was far too close by any normal circumstances, but this wasn’t a normal circumstance. Finally Dean leaned forward and kissed him.

It was a soft peck of the lips but Dean swore he felt a river of warmth flow through him. He let his eyes slip close for those few seconds and revelled in the buzz on his lips. With hesitation he drew back and opened his eyes. Cas was staring at him with wide, blue eyes, frozen like a statue. It took a while for Dean’s brain to work again but when it did, he felt his panic hit him like a hammer.

He gasped and backed away, “Oh my god! Cas, I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean —”

He was shut up when Cas grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him in. Cas caught his lips full force, pouring all of his pent up frustration into the movement and trapping Dean’s mouth in a sweet embrace. Dean felt his panic melt away and leaned into Cas’s touch. He wrapped a hand around the angel’s waist while Cas let his fingers slide to rest on the back of his neck and pulled him in further.

Eventually he felt Cas slide his tongue into his mouth and god it felt good. He returned the favor and Cas moaned silently inside his mouth. He didn’t know how long they kissed but eventually he felt Cas pull back. Dean opened his eyes. The angel’s pupils were dilated and he was breathing heavily, and it was beautiful. They stood there in a loose embrace gazing at each other.

Dean licked his lips and placed his other hand gently on Cas’s cheek.

“Holy crap,” he muttered with a small laugh. Cas nodded in agreement and his smile slowly grew until he was beaming ear to ear.

“So, does — does this mean we’re —”

“Yes!” Cas lunged forward and threw his arms over Dean’s shoulders. He laughed into Dean’s ear and it was the sweetest sound he had ever heard.

“Oh my god, we actually did it!” he exclaimed and laughed along, grabbing Cas in a squishy bear hug. “I thought — I didn’t know!”

“Neither did I,” Cas continued to giggle and yelped when Dean lifted him up and spun them around, the water spraying as they splashed in the waves, getting them thoroughly soaked.

Dean felt like he was flying and nothing could ever bring him down. He was in love with Cas and Cas loved him back and they were together and he actually had a partner! Dean kept laughing and peppering Cas with kisses, causing him to giggle even more. He didn’t care if they looked like ridiculous children because this was one of the best moments of his entire life!

Eventually he put Cas down and they took a minute to just admire each other. Cas’s hair was slicked back and sticking out at odd angles with water droplets framing his face.

Then the revelation hit him. This — this could be permanent. There was nothing in his way stopping him from spending all of his time with Cas and learning everything about him. He could make him smile and laugh because god damnit, he loved it when Cas smiled! They could hunt together, just like they always did, but now it would be so much better.

He heard someone yelling his name behind him, and both he and Cas turned around. Up on the beach strand Sam was waving at them with his phone held up.

Dean froze when he saw the phone and glared up at his brother. God-fucking-damnit.

“Say hi to your future selves!” Sam yelled down to them and smiled.

“You didn’t!” Dean yelled back at him.

“I did!” Sam laughed, “And you two should get a room, it’s like a gay porno over there!”

Dean groaned and covered his face with his hands, he couldn’t believe his brother just recorded that whole thing. How did he even know it was going to happen?

“You know we could do that,” Cas leaned in and whispered in his ear.

“Do what?” Dean looked at him, confused.

“Get a room,” Cas stared at him with a mischievous gleam in his eyes. Holy shit, did Cas actually just say that. And by the way Cas was looking at him, the angel knew exactly what he was doing. He’d never seen Cas try and flirt before. It was fucking hot.

That left Dean speechless for a few moments and he faltered as he tried to respond. This seemed to amuse Cas even more and his grin widened. Once Dean recomposed himself, he leaned in, almost breathing in Cas’s ear.

“Hell yes,” Dean felt the angel shudder slightly. He looked back at his brother and gave him a cocky smile, followed by a quick thrusting of his finger through a hole made by his hand. Dean saw his brother squirm uncomfortably. He just laughed.

Cas began to pull at his arm and Dean chuckled at his impatience.

“You know what sounds really good right now?” Dean said as rested his forehead against Cas’s.

“What?” the angel tried to hide his smile.

“A shower, I don’t like sand in my ass if you ask me.”

“Me neither, maybe I could join you.”

“Definitely.”

Then Cas leaned in to kiss him again, and with a snap, they disappeared.

 

 

Sam stood befuddled by the shoreline, staring at where Dean and Cas had just been a few seconds before. He clicked the button to end the video and looked down at the thumbnail. Dean might be pissed now, but he will definitely thank him later. Especially when he learned that Sam had gotten _everything_ because how could he have not noticed the tension? It was so painfully obvious.

But Sam did not want to think about what they were doing right now because gross! And if Dean ever starts to talk about it he _will_ chuck something at him.

It was about time they figured it out. Ten years — those idiots. They could’ve been smooching a long time ago, if they hadn’t been so bullheaded.

Sam was happy for them, especially Dean. His brother had been under the impression for so long that no one could ever love him permanently that he had shut out any notion of a relationship. But Cas had always been there, always loved him, it had just taken him awhile to see it.

Sam sighed and sat back down on his reclined chair. Now it was just him here and he could relax knowing that everyone that he loved, who was still alive, was happy. And maybe, just maybe, he would find someone too. It didn’t have to be soon but sometime in the future.

He grabbed another beer from the cooler and took a long swing of it. Things were good, and they were happy. This was more than any of them could’ve asked for. God may have gone off again but he had left them with a good life, a simpler life.

He quietly thanked Chuck for everything that had gotten better in the past couple years. No one knew that he still prayed occasionally — and he usually didn’t, but this time he felt it was appropriate. Even if he was several galaxies away, Cas was technically his son after all.

_So hey Chuck, guess what? Dean’s gonna be your new son-in-law!_

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for checking this out! I hope y'all enjoyed all the references and goofiness :) This was my first time writing for a big bang and finishing a long(er) length story so I'm very proud of it and hope I keep improving as I continue to write


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